Abstract
As one of the first studies to explore the joint consumption of both leisure and pandemic-related tourism products in former pandemic epicenters, this research expands the scope of dark tourism to include former pandemic epicenters. The motivational determinants of intention to visit leisure and pandemic-related sites are empirically identified using an ordered logit model. This is the first study which formally proposes patriotism as a new push motive in stimulating people to visit post-disaster destinations. The identified segmentations of tourists with different levels of push-pull motives and socio-demographic features provides key stakeholders and practitioners in former epicenters with a systematic recovery plan in the post-pandemic era. Key Words Post-disaster tourism, intention to visit, push and pull motives, ordered logit regression, factor analysis, cluster analysis Introduction Although the development of the tourism industry significantly contributes to economic growth in various economies, it has been catastrophically interrupted by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The global deluge of the pandemic has led to worldwide travel restrictions, which not only hindered the flow of international tourists but also (due to epidemic control policies such as the 14-day quarantine in China) drastically reduced the number of tourists within each country. The tourism industry and overall economic prosperity were seriously harmed by the pandemic, especially in former epicenters which had the majority of confirmed cases or COVID-related deaths compared to other cities. With ongoing vaccination programs and the increase in herd immunity, it is likely that epidemic control policies will be relaxed. It is thus essential for key stakeholders in the tourism industry to put forward a systematic recovery plan for the post-pandemic era, especially within former epicenters.