THE EFFECTS OF SEASONALITY ON MICE TOURISM DEMAND IN JORDAN

Abstract

Seasonal tourism is a set of influences that determines tourism demand, and it is defined as the movement of tourists caused by climate and institutional changes. Most tourist destinations in the world are affected by seasonal phenomena. Destinations with high seasonal variability often face various challenges, such as high costs, overcrowding, and inadequate infrastructure in peak seasons, while in low seasons, the challenges are low numbers of tourists, lack of services and job opportunities. Thus, the purpose of this article is to investigate how Jordan's MICE tourism demand is affected by seasonality. A quantitative research method was applied in this study by distributing a survey to 331 respondents among domestic and international tourists who visited Amman, stayed in a hotel at least one night and participated in meeting, incentive, conference and exhibition (MICE) activities, using a non-probability sampling technique. Data was analysed using Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24.0 and Smart PLS software. The results of the study exhibited a significant and positive effect between two aspects of tourism seasonality (political and economic) and MICE tourism. The study indicates that MICE tourism is quite beneficial for the economy of a country to generate demand and to stimulate the tourism industry. MICE tourism that takes place should be systematically planned and developed, and should be established as tourist attractions, catalyst for further development, image builders and animators of the destination. Their success is mostly due to the backing of accommodations of a suitable caliber, the close coordination between travel agents, the accessibility of detailed information about events and related activities, and most crucially, effective marketing initiatives.