The tourism environment is currently undergoing changes driven by various factors such as an aging population, technological innovation, and eco-friendly policies, leading to the formation of new tourism demand. The Korea Tourism Organization (2024) p...
The tourism environment is currently undergoing changes driven by various factors such as an aging population, technological innovation, and eco-friendly policies, leading to the formation of new tourism demand. The Korea Tourism Organization (2024) presented the strengthening of regional tourism, wellness and healing-centered travel, digital customized travel, and the spread of localism in its 『2025 Tourism Trends S.P.E.C.T.R.U.M.』 report. These trends indicate a growing demand for customized packaged products. Rail tourism, in particular, is establishing itself as a core element of the wellness and eco-friendly tourism industry as a low-carbon, sustainable mode of transportation. The importance of rail-centered tourism products is being emphasized in alignment with the government's regional balanced development policies and strategies to revitalize local tourism. However, despite the growth of the railway tourism package market, there is a lack of research that comprehensively examines the relationship between tourism motivation, product selection attributes, and behavioral intention for railway tourism products. Therefore, based on prior research, this study constructs tourism motivation into two dimensions: push motivation and pull motivation; selection attributes into four dimensions: transportation, travel agency, tourist destination, and meals; and behavioral intention as a single dimension. The study aims to identify the key factors by which the tourism motivations of tourists using railway tourism package products influence selection attributes and to verify the influence of how selection attributes and tourism motivations are reflected in behavioral intentions.
To verify this, a survey was conducted from September 20 to October 15, 2025, targeting 274 customers who used railway tourism package products over approximately one month. Using SPSS 26.0, we performed frequency analysis, exploratory factor analysis, reliability and validity verification, correlation analysis, and multiple regression analysis. The results of this study, analyzed through the established research model, are as follows.
The results of testing Hypothesis 1 showed that while tourism motivation positively influenced all four choice attributes, it did not affect the meal factor except for the inducement motivation. Therefore, Hypothesis 1 was partially accepted. The results of testing Hypothesis 2 showed that the selection attributes positively (+) influence behavioral intention, thus Hypothesis 2 was accepted. The results of testing Hypothesis 3 showed that both the driving motivation and the inducement motivation positively (+) influence behavioral intention, thus Hypothesis 3 was accepted. Synthesizing these findings, this study empirically verified that tourism motivation and choice attributes significantly influence behavioral intention for railway tourism package products, while revealing that inducement motivation and travel agency factors exert substantial influence on behavioral intention. Therefore, it provides the following implications for tourism companies planning and operating railway tourism package products, railway operators, and government ministries and local governments establishing tourism policies.
This study confirmed a high correlation between the tourism motivations of railway tourism package users, the selection attributes of railway tourism packages, and behavioral intention. This suggests the potential to develop high-quality railway tourism packages, actively attract customers, and further contribute to balanced regional development and the revitalization of local tourism.
Accordingly, it is necessary for government ministries and local governments, as well as tourism companies such as Korea Railroad Corporation (Korail) and Korail Tourism Development, to discover content reflecting the needs of railway tourism package users and plan package products tailored to specific regions.