Motivations, attitudes and intentions towards luxury dining in airplane themed restaurants: moderating roles of desire to fly, desire for luxury and FOMO
Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Insights
ISSN: 2514-9792
Article publication date: 21 October 2022
Issue publication date: 1 December 2023
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the motivations, attitudes and intentions towards luxury dining in airplane themed restaurants (ATRs). The moderating roles of desire to fly, desire for luxury and fear of missing out (FOMO) towards attitude and intention to embark on this ATR experience are also investigated.
Design/methodology/approach
Data are collected through a consumer panel. A total of 315 valid responses were analysed using exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and multi-group moderation. To enhance ecological validity, a stimulus for the Singapore Airlines A380 Restaurant @Changi was created to ensure complete understanding of the product offering by the participants.
Findings
Three motivation factors were discovered – novelty, escape and supporting reliving. Interestingly, it was also found that the attitude towards ATR partially mediated the relationship between supportive reliving and intention towards ATRs. Disposition towards FOMO was found to moderate the effect of attitude towards ATR on intention towards ATR. Negative effect between escape motivation and attitude towards the ATR from the moderation analysis for desire for luxury and desire to fly shows that people are still hesitant to accept the ATR as a replacement to satisfy their salient needs for luxury travel.
Practical implications
Insights of this study demonstrate that local airlines could pivot their business through innovative offerings during the pandemic. The ATR concept can be effectively marketed by appealing to hedonistic and nationalistic needs and to avoid positioning it as an alternative for flying.
Originality/value
This is a novel concept introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic. Unprecedentedly, it uncovers the motivations, attitudes and intentions towards luxury dining in ATRs as a means to compensate for the pent-up desire to relive the experience of air travel.
Keywords
Citation
Lau, K.C., Lee, S. and Phau, I. (2023), "Motivations, attitudes and intentions towards luxury dining in airplane themed restaurants: moderating roles of desire to fly, desire for luxury and FOMO", Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Insights, Vol. 6 No. 5, pp. 1967-1989. https://doi.org/10.1108/JHTI-05-2022-0161
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited