LGBT+ tourists’ destination choice: relationship between psychological motivations and destination image

Purpose: this study aimed to identify the relationship between psychological motivations and destination image of self-defined LGBT+ tourists’ destination choice. Design/ methodology/ approach: The study was operationalized through a survey with 239 respondents. Which 89 were self-defined as LGBT+. Statistical univariate and bivariate analyses were used for data analysis. Findings: (1) both targets value leisure as the primary psychological motivation for choosing the travel destination; (2) infrastructures and socio-economic environment and affective image are the most critical dimensions of destination image; (3) the psychological motivations increase the destination image of self-defined LGBT+ tourists'; (4) there was no significant difference between the choice of tourist destination between heterosexuals and the LGBT +. Originality/value: Previous studies have focused on analyzes of consumption of LGBT + tourist destinations, but not understanding the main psychological motivations and their association with the image of the destination, either check whether there are in fact differences between the LGBT + and heterosexual audiences. This study answered to this gap.