PREFERENCES OF THE YOUNG SEGMENT IN THE CHOICE OF A TOURIST DESTINATION

The study of the consumer's behavior is a complex activity which involves several variables. The fuzzy sets theory provides a valuable framework to the representation of the preferences and the uncertainty existing in the individuals' decisions. The consideration set is the central component of selection models of tourist destinations since to take them into account it is essential to be part of the consumers' evoked set. It is appropriate to discuss it as a fuzzy set as when forming the consideration set not all the destinations chosen present the same interest in being visited due to the variety of attributes that influence the choice and other factors, that in most cases are subjective in nature. Young tourism is a growing trend in the world. According to the World Youth and Student Travel Conference made in Madrid in October 2004 the annual growth rate of the travel market for young people worldwide is 5%. In Argentina the young tourism represents almost 20% of the total tourism market. This paper reports the first results of PICT 383: "Young Tourism in Argentina: Study of Consideration Set of Chosen Destinations" in which we analyze the university students' behavior in the selection of an Argentinian tourist destination over three years.