Insights for pro-sustainable tourist behavior: The role of sustainable destination information and pro-sustainable tourist habits

Abstract

In recent decades, the impositions of environmental sustainability have resulted in severe challenges for the tourism sector. It is not enough to make tourist destinations greener and more circular. It is necessary to encourage pro-sustainable behavior among tourists. This research aims to explore the role of available reliable information on the sustainability of destinations in relation to the pro-sustainable habits of tourists and to investigate changes in tourist behavior related to travel and tourism. In addition, it aims to assess the influence of tourists’ pro-sustainable habits on changes in their behavior regarding travel and tourism. For this, a sample of 25,711 residents in Europe-27 were considered, collected through the Flash Eurobarometer 499 database (attitudes of Europeans against tourism, autumn 2021) by GESIS—Leibniz Institute for Social Sciences. A quantitative analysis was performed using the Partial Least Square method. The results reveal that the available reliable information on the sustainability of destinations positively influences the adoption of pro-sustainable travel and tourism habits and changes in tourist behavior, guiding them towards pro-sustainable travel and tourism preferences. Furthermore, pro-sustainable travel and tourism habits positively influence pro-sustainable changes in tourist behavior. This study provides accurate and accessible information on the sustainability of destinations, promoting pro-sustainable travel and tourism habits and encouraging the adoption of conscious behavior during travel to work towards a more sustainable tourism industry, which is responsible in regard to the environment and to local communities.