時尚雙語:瞭解“旅遊個性” 打造完美假期
Can't decide where to go on your next vacation? Stanley Plog may have the answer.
Dr. Plog has spent 40 years researching travel preferences and decisions, from which coach seats are most comfortable on airplanes to how resorts and European capitals can best pitch to tourists. He's developed a questionnaire that pegs people into six different profiles, identifying their 'travel personality.' Now, Dr. Plog and Bahir Browsh, a former Trans World Airlines executive and Travel Channel president, have turned Dr. Plog's research into a Web site, , where users can get travel suggestions free.
When we vacation, we all have different desires. Some people like to relax on the beach; others climb mountains. Some people love crowds. Many are most comfortable driving to someplace close to home, and often the same place as last year and the year before. Others jump on airplanes to see new, unfamiliar places, far from the masses.
I tried the BestTripChoices site out on my family and found that it zeroed in on personalities quite well, figuring out that most of us wanted history and culture in our trips, we like to sample new places, and we use mixed modes of transportation for our travel. And somehow it also knew that I like to buy native specialties when I travel.
Knowing exactly what kind of vacation most fits your travel personality is the key to having a satisfying experience, Dr. Plog says. And it's not always obvious. Sometimes we feel that we need to seek out rough-edge adventures when really we'd be happier lying by a pool with a cocktail. What's more, some couples have different travel personalities, so trips may not be compatible for both.
'People choose the wrong vacation all the time, and they come back really disappointed,' he says.
The BestTripChoices site's questionnaire identifies you in one of six personality profiles, from a 'venturer,' who likes to find undiscovered gems and explore unique cultures, to an 'authentic,' who prefers everything familiar and predictable and likes going where there are lots of people -- it must be a good place, after all, if there are crowds.
Each extreme represents only 3% to 4% of the population -- most of us are in-between to varying degrees. On the 'venturer' side of the scale, 'mid-venturers' like some physical activity on trips and travel with intellectual curiosity for history. 'Centric-venturers' like exotic places, but they want good hotels and restaurants, too. On the authentics side, 'mid-authentics' are particularly social people who love golf and mellow vacations in the sun. 'Centric-authentics' would rather drive to destinations than fly, and are comfortable on cruises.
Based on Dr. Plog's database of travel surveys on what destinations were most satisfying to what type of people, the site suggests places to go that fit your travel personality. It's a scientific version of the service of a very good travel agent -- someone who would get to know clients, figure out what they like and suggest appropriate trips. (And many travel agents already use software that helps them target trips for clients.) But with so many people now booking their own trips, some study of your inclinations and preferences can help avoid unsatisfactory vacations.
'The whole idea is to narrow down and select the place that is best for you,' Dr. Plog says.
Dr. Plog's work has been used by the travel industry for decades, and the science behind his study has been peer reviewed and published in academic journals. 'Plog is a pioneer,' says Paul Biederman, an assistant professor at New York University and author of a travel industry textbook. 'He's now applying advanced technology to what he has been doing all along.'
Dr. Biederman says the theory behind identifying travel personalities is solid. 'I think it works, especially for people who are avid travelers looking for new places to visit,' he said.
To develop a profile, Dr. Plog's quiz presents 15 statements and asks people to agree or disagree with each on a seven-point scale. Some seem obviously related to travel, such as 'I prefer to go to undiscovered places before big hotels and restaurants are built.' Others are more obscure, such as 'Chance has little to do with success in my life.'
The trick is that only seven or eight of the questions drive the results -- the rest are thrown in for cover, Dr. Plog says. He won't disclose which questions are the true revealers of personality, except to say they are not the obvious travel questions. How much you read, for example, and how much TV you watch are indicators of the trips you'll prefer, Dr. Plog says.
The site pegged me as a centric venturer. According to the profile, I read newspapers a lot (you think?) and am selective in my television viewing. I could be happy on a Greek cruise or a tour of California ghost towns or even a New York shopping trip. I'm the one who likes new places but not too raw -- I want a good hotel, too.
To my surprise, my wife came out 'mid-venturer' -- more adventurous in her travel desires than I am. That didn't seem quite right -- camping was never her thing when we were younger. But then I remembered that she's always the one pushing adventures like kayaking trips and river rafting when we go places.
My daughters fell in my same 'centric venturer' category, and that fit, too, although my college-student daughter thought that it underestimated her desire for adventure in the destinations suggested. Montreal and Quebec were among her recommendations, while she says Argentina, India, Turkey and Spain are tops on her wish list right now.
Indeed, while the site seemed prescient at targeting our personalities, it was less clear at suggesting destinations. The recommendations overlap considerably across categories since many places fit multiple personalities.
Hawaii, for example, can be great for adventurers who like surfing or hiking, and just as much fun for authentics who want to souvenir shop with the hordes in Waikiki. Likewise, Alaska can be a place of great adventure, and yet authentics can enjoy gorgeous scenery from a train or relax on a cruise ship. Massachusetts ranked high as a destination for five of the six different personality groups.
Dr. Plog has 160 destinations ranked on the Web site, but ultimately wants to get to 1,200. The rankings are based on surveys of travelers who have been to those places. Researchers identify a person's travel personality then ask where they've been and what they liked. Right now, it's populated mostly with information on destinations in North America and Europe, and lacking in Asia and other regions.
The real value is in pegging what you really want out of a vacation. Where you go is just the fun part.
還沒想好下一次度假去哪兒嗎？問問斯坦利-普羅格(Stanley Plog)吧。
普羅格博士40年來一直在研究人們的旅遊喜好和習慣，從飛機上哪些座位最舒服到度假地和歐洲國家首都如何才能更好地吸引遊客，可謂包羅萬象。他設計了一份調查問卷，把遊客分爲六類，以確定他們的“旅遊個性”。現在，普羅格博士和巴伊爾-布勞希(Bahir Browsh)一起，把研究成果設計成一個網站，用戶可從那裏得到免費的旅遊建議。布勞希曾任美國環球航空公司(Trans World Airlines)首席執行長以及旅遊頻道(Travel Channel)總裁。
我們的度假方式各不相同，有人喜歡在海灘上休息，有人喜歡登山遠行；有人喜歡熱鬧的地方，有人喜歡開車去離家不遠的地方；有人度假地點幾年不變，有人專門選從沒去過、遠離喧囂的陌生地。
我在BestTripChoices網站上給家人做測試，發現結果相當準。它知道我們基本上都喜歡參觀名勝古蹟，喜歡去新地方，旅途中經常使用不同的交通工具，奇怪的是，它還知道我旅行時喜歡買一點當地的土特產。
普羅格博士說，知道最適合自己的度假方式，就能在旅行時獲得更滿意的體驗。然而，這種喜好並不是很容易發現。有時我們覺得自己想去野外探險，其實內心深處更喜歡在泳池邊躺着、身邊放上一杯雞尾酒。此外，有些夫妻的“旅遊個性”各不相同，因此在選擇度假方式時會出現分歧。
“人們經常選擇錯誤的度假方式，結果乘興而去，敗興而歸。”普羅格博士說。
BestTripChoices網站的問卷能確定你屬於六類人羣中的哪一類，從喜歡發現未知世界、探尋獨特文化的“重度冒險者”，到偏向比較熟悉和有條不紊的東西、喜歡去熱鬧地方的“重度信任者”──這類人覺得，只要人多，那裏一定是好地方。
這兩類極端人羣只佔總人數的3%到4%，大多數人介於兩者之間。在靠近“冒險者”的一端，“中度冒險者”喜歡旅途中有些體力活動，帶着對歷史的好奇心遊玩； “輕度冒險者”喜歡有異國情調的地方，但要住好飯店，在好餐廳用餐。在接近“信任者”的一端，“中度信任者”大多是那些喜歡社交的人，他們愛玩高爾夫，愛在陽光下休閒；“輕度信任者”喜歡開車旅遊勝過坐飛機，也喜歡坐遊輪。
普羅格博士對哪一類人適合去哪裏度假進行了調查。以收集到的數據爲基礎，BestTripChoices網站向你推薦更符合你“旅遊個性”的度假地點，它就像是一個出色的旅行社，熟悉客戶的喜好，找到他們喜歡什麼，建議恰當的旅行安排。（很多旅行社早就開始使用軟件，協助他們爲客戶設計旅遊路線。）不過，現在很多人都喜歡自己安排行程，對其旅遊喜好的一些研究有助於避免不愉快的度假經歷。
“網站的構想就是幫你挑選最適合自己的度假地點。”普羅格博士說道。
普羅格博士的研究已被旅遊業界使用數十年，其科研成果得到同行的好評，並在學術刊物出版。“普羅格是這方面的先鋒人物，” 紐約大學(New York University)助教、曾撰寫過旅遊業教材的保羅-彼得曼(Paul Biederman)說，“他正在把先進技術應用到他長期從事的工作當中。”
彼得曼博士說，“旅遊個性”的甄別理論是可靠的。“我覺得它很有效，尤其適合那些尋找新度假地點的遊客。”
普羅格博士的問卷在調查旅遊個性時列出了15個表述，讓答卷者對這些表述從1到7選擇認可程度。有些表述明顯與旅遊有關，比如“我喜歡去一些原始的地方，那裏沒有大飯店和高級餐廳。”另一些問題則要隱諱一點，比如“我一生中取得的成功與運氣無關。”
問卷中有個小機關，只有七、八個問題與最終結果有關，其餘都是放進去混淆視聽的，普羅格博士說。他不願公開哪些問題能真正揭示“旅遊個性”，只說它們並非與旅行明顯有關。舉例而言，你看多少本書，看多長時間電視，這些都能看出你的旅行喜好。
網站把我定爲“輕度冒險者”。根據性格分析，我看很多報紙（真的嗎？），有選擇地看電視節目，應該喜歡坐遊輪去希臘，去加州的鬼鎮，甚至去紐約購物。我喜歡新鮮地方，但不要太原始，飯店要住好的。
出乎意料的是，我妻子是個“中度冒險者”，旅行的探險慾望比我更高。這好像不太對──我們倆年輕時，她一直不喜歡在外面露營；但我很快想起來，去野外時，她總是提出要玩皮划艇和漂流。
我女兒也是“輕度冒險者”，這與實際情況相符，不過我這個正在讀大學的女兒覺得，網站推薦的度假地點低估了她的冒險精神，比如蒙特利爾和魁北克，她說自己現在把阿根廷、印度、土耳其和西班牙列爲首選目的地。
確實，雖然網站在判斷“旅遊個性”方面頗有預見性，但推薦的度假地點並非涇渭分明。針對六類人羣分別推薦的目的地有不少是重複的，因爲很多地方適合不同性格的人。
舉例而言，夏威夷對喜歡衝浪和徒步旅行的“冒險者”來說都很不錯，對喜歡在懷基基海灘購買土著紀念品的“信任者”來說同樣也很好。同理，阿拉斯加是“冒險者”的天堂，但“信任者”也可以坐火車或遊輪欣賞大自然的美景。馬薩諸塞州在五類不同性格人羣的推薦目的地中排名都很高。
普羅格教授在網站中列出了160個度假地點，他希望最終能增加到1,200個。排名是對已經去過那些地方的旅行者進行調查後得出的。研究人員先確定一個人的“旅遊個性”，然後問他去過哪裏，喜歡哪些地方。現在，推薦的目的地主要分佈於北美和歐洲，亞洲和其它地區則較少。
