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University of Plymouth PEARL https://pearl.plymouth.ac.uk 04 University of Plymouth Research Theses 01 Research Theses Main Collection 2015 Reflecting on the Development of British Ocean Cruise Tourism: Keeping the Romance Afloat Cholwill, Martin John http://hdl.handle.net/10026.1/3549 Plymouth University All content in PEARL is protected by copyright law. Author manuscripts are made available in accordance with publisher policies. Please cite only the published version using the details provided on the item record or document. In the absence of an open licence (e.g. Creative Commons), permissions for further reuse of content should be sought from the publisher or author. This copy of the thesis has been supplied on condition that anyone who consults it is understood to recognise that its copyright rests with its author and that no quotation from the thesis and no information derived from it may be published without the author’s prior consent. 1 REFLECTING ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF BRITISH OCEAN CRUISE TOURISM: KEEPING THE ROMANCE AFLOAT by MARTIN JOHN CHOLWILL A thesis submitted to Plymouth University in partial fulfilment for the degree of MASTER OF PHILOSOPHY April 2014 2 Contents Page No. Abstract……………………………………………………………… 8 Chapter (1) Introduction……………………………………………. 9 1:1) Research Aim, Objectives and Research Question………………………… 13. Chapter (2) Literature Review: Includes Themes and Background Theory……………………………………………………………………………………….17 2.1) Evolving Social Expectation from Liners to Cruise Ships………………….20 2.2) Marketing and Cruise Consumers……………………………………………..28 2.3) Marketing Nostalgia……………………………………………………. 35 2.4) Social interaction…………………………………………………………………40 2.5) Research Concept…………………………………………………………………49 Chapter (3) Methodology: Description of methodology including Data Theory & Ethics…………………………………………………………………………… 53 3.1) Posivitism and Interpretivism …………………………………………….. 54 3.2) Ethics and Values in Research………………………………………………….. 57 3.3) Research Approach………………………………………………………………..60 3 3.4) Research Strategy………………………………………………………………… 62 3.5) Research Design…………………………………………………………………… 64 3.6) Research Plan…………………………………………………………….. 67 Chapter (4) Data Collection……………………………………….. 69 4.1) Case Study………………………………………………………………………. 69 4.2) Participant Observation…………………………………………………… 75 4.3) Passenger Case Studies…………………………………………………………. .82 4.4) Individual Case Studies…………………………………………………….84 Chapter (5) Analysis and Discussion: Development of focal theory and a review of findings……………………………………………………………………………95 5.1) Participant Observation Analysis ……………………………………………..101 5.2) Passenger Case Study Analysis……………………………………………104 5.3) Individual Case Study Analysis……………………………………………106 5.4) Analysis Findings and Concept…………………………………………….108 Chapter (6) Conclusion: Summary, Research Limitation and suggestions for future work.................................................................................................................112 References……………………………………………………………………….117 4 Page No. Figures: 1) Cumulative Value Concept……………………………………………………. 50 2) Cumulative Value ‘Lost’ Element………………………………………………108 Tables: 1) Comparative Daily Programme…………………………………………………. 81 2) Participant Observation Analysis………………………………………… 103/104 2.1) Participant Case Study Interviews Analysis…………………………… 105/106 2.2) Cumulative Value Analysis………………………………………………… 107 5 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The author wishes to acknowledge the help and excellent support given by my academic supervisors at Plymouth University: Dr Philip Gibson and Dr Wai Mun Lim. I also owe a great deal to my wife Margaret who has given me tremendous moral support and encouragement. 6 AUTHOR'S DECLARATION At no time during the registration for the degree of Master of Philosophy has the author been registered for any other University award without prior agreement of the Graduate Committee. Work submitted for this research degree at the Plymouth University has not formed part of any other degree either at Plymouth University or at another establishment This study was self-financed. Relevant seminars and conferences were regularly attended at which work was often presented; external institutions were visited for consultation purposes and papers published. Publications (or presentation of other forms of creative and performing work): 3rd Tourism Industry Symposium Finland, Proceedings published paper 2005. 2nd ICC Plymouth Conference- published paper 2011. Presentation and Conferences Attended: Tourism Symposium, Finland 2005, ICC Plymouth 2010, ICC Stenden, Holland 2012. Word count of main body of thesis: 34,855 Signed M.J.Cholwill Date 25/03/15 7 Reflecting on the Development of British Ocean Cruise Tourism: Keeping the Romance Afloat Martin John Cholwill Abstract This study reflects on the development of the British ocean cruise industry. In taking a historical perspective this provides an opportunity to discover if, despite changes in social expectation and technological advance, an element of the value cruise passengers place on their experience has been lost. Equating the ocean cruise experience to passenger cumulative value, the study utilises a thematic approach to reviewing literature and relates this to philosophical perspectives in developing a research strategy. The research data collected provides an insight to cruise tourist expectation and their perception of cumulative value in providing conclusions of value to cruise planners and offering a foundation for further research. Key Words: Historical, thematic, cumulative, value. 8 1) Introduction This dissertation addresses ocean cruise product development and reflects on the evolution of the cruise business since its inception. Examining the development of the ocean cruise can give greater understanding if something tangible or intangible that may have been part of a standard offering for passengers in the past is no longer available currently. The reason this study is being conducted is to illustrate that discovering a missing element from the ocean cruise product can add to the cumulative value placed upon the experience by consumers. When designing future cruises if this lost element can be re-introduced by industry planners it will add benefit for future tourists and enhance market appeal. This addresses a knowledge gap that may have been overlooked as the cruise industry expanded. It is accepted that there may be no clear answer to the research question as limitations outlined later restrict the scope of the study. The challenge within this work is to seek a suitable research strategy from which to gather valid data and gain understanding from the outcome. The study will add to academic literature on the topic of tourism when considered in relation to ocean cruising. This being an area of tourism research that has still relatively limited reference material and this work will be of benefit to future research on the topic. As already outlined, the problem being explored in this work is what element can be discovered from past ocean tourism experience which may have been subsumed over time, and if re-introduced, may add value for future cruise consumers. The term value as used in this work relates to cruise consumers’ overall feeling of personal wellbeing formed from cumulative parts of their cruise experience (Arola & Suontausta 2005). In this study it is referred to as the cumulative value. The literature review is themed in order to both illustrate ocean cruise product development and to link key factors of the overall consumer experience to philosophical thinking. When considering societal change and technological advance in the last 60 years, it would be easy to assume everything in relation to, what is termed in this study cruise tourism, has improved. This work seeks to prove that there are challenges to sustaining a romantic image of ocean cruising and the past may hold a key to help sustain 9 popularity of the product in the future. The first stage in this process is to examine literature pertinent to the research project. In the first section of the literature review the development of the ocean cruise product from its line voyage origins to the present modern cruise ships is illustrated. This reveals why by examining the way the ocean cruise offering has re-shaped this has presented the possibility that an element may have been lost that if re-introduced could influence cruise planners’ choice when considering this factor in relation to the future development of the product. The option of a scheduled North Atlantic crossing remains from Southampton to New York but is a minor offering compared to the importance liners played in defining what later can be considered as cruise tourism. The transition of cruise tourism and the modern day cruise ships has taken many years. Owing much of its offering today to the style, luxury and romance of the liner era, the importance of their contribution and relevance to this study will be explored. Although this study focuses on the British market it has to be acknowledged that the influence and acumen of North American business, notably Carnival Corporation, the world’s largest cruise group, have been a major driving force in popularising cruise tourism internationally. From a relatively humble beginning as a one-ship company, the ‘C’ funnel logo of that ship Mardi Gras, the former Empress of Canada, started company cruises to the Caribbean in 1972 and soon the brand had become a familiar sight internationally. Within ten years Carnival Cruise Lines symbolised the establishment of mass cruise