Impact of Tourists’ Motivation for Engaging Sports and Recreational Activities in Southern Province

Abstract

Sport tourism is quickly establishing itself as a significant force within the global tourist market. It has gained massive momentum in recent years due to its social, environmental, and economic impacts on destinations. According to that, it becomes a rapidly growing sector an increasing number of tourists participate in sports activities during their trips. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of tourists’ motives in terms of self-enrichment, social needs, travel exploration, and physical fitness on their engagement in sports and recreational activities, with special reference to tourists who are visit Southern Province. According to that, the data were collected from 123 tourists in Southern Province. Moreover, the present study followed quantitative methodology and data were gathered by conducting a survey using a validated self-administrated questionnaire. Multiple linear regression analysis was conducted as a statistical technique to analyze the data. Findings of the study suggest that self-enrichment (0.210), social needs (0.479), travel exploration (0.227), and physical fitness (0.303) positively impact tourists’ engagement in sports and recreational activities in Southern Province in Sri Lankan context. Consequently, findings will help to policymakers for create and develop favorable conditions for sports and recreational activities, which bring many measurable benefits to the country. In addition to that, present study contributes to the existing literature among the infrequent studies to investigate travel motives for engaging in sports tourism activities. Further studies are recommended to target other destinations and test the relationships with other suitable variables with in-depth analysis.