The Image of Ecuador in the Chinese Youth Market: Tourist Preferences and Motivations

Conducting studies on the image of a country and the preferences of tourists contribute to developing plans and programs for the benefit of a tourist destination. The current research constitutes an analysis of Ecuador’s image and the preferences of the Chinese youth market regarding this country. This empirical study used a questionnaire as data collection method, and the findings were analyzed with univariate and bivariate statistics. The results show that young Chinese tourists prefer to travel with friends and that their most valued motivations to visit Ecuador are related to knowing the nature, tasting the cuisine of the country, knowing new places, different cultures, and lifestyles, and enjoying the sun and the beach. Also, the types of tourism that Chinese citizens would like to do in Ecuador are nature tourism, sun and beach tourism, and urban tourism.