Backpackers' travel motivations and involvement: A research on backpackers visiting Istanbul

Backpackers have become an important market segment in the World tourism industry. In this thesis, demographics, travel related characteristics, travel motivations and involvement with backpacking of the backpackers visiting İstanbul was examined. With this framework, a survey type emprical reserach, in which data was collected by questionnarrie, was conducted on backpackers visiting İstanbul. Findings of the data gathered from 887 backpackers indicate that more than half of backpacker visiting İstanbul are female and mostly single with the most observed nationalities; German, Australian, French, American and New Zealander. According to the findings backpacker?s duration of stay in İstanbul nearly 6 days while in Turkey it is 11,5 days. In the study it was found that travel motivation of backpacker visiting İstanbul can be analyzed in seven headings as; improveing knowledge about the world, search for experience, socialization, rites of passages, search for quietness, backpacking identity, showing skills. On the other hand it was found that backpackers?s involvement with backpacking could be analyzed in four headings as; identity, centrality to life style, attractiveness and social bonding. When the relationship between travel motivations and involvement with backpacking examined it was found that; socialization, rites of passage, backpacking identity have positive impact on involvement?s identity dimension. In addition, socialization, rites of passage, backpaking identity and showing skills has positive impact on centrality to life style dimension. Also it was found that socialization, rites of passage and searching for quiteness has positive impact on social boing dimension while attractiveness dimension was positively affected by search for experience, improving knowledge about world and backpacking identity.