The relationship between weather conditions and tourists’ perception of comfort: the case of the winter sun resort of Eilat

This chapter examines the interplay between weather conditions and tourists' perception of comfort. This relationship is examined based on the assumption that perceived weather comfort is one of the key constraints that shape tourists' propensity and motivation to travel. Using the case of Israel's winter sun resort - Eilat, the studymeasured actual climatic factors and, through a structured questionnaire, interviewed beach tourists on their perceived climatic comfort.The results show that optimal climatic conditions for beach tourists can be detected. Also, wind velocity and cloudiness, having such variable characteristics in terms of time and space, exert a crucial influence on tourists' levels of satisfaction. Subsequently the study found that domestic tourists are more sensitive to weather conditions than tourists from overseas. Furthermore, apparently, travel motivations have bearing on the way tourists perceive weather, mainly when weather conditions are poor. As a consequent of the above results, the study concluded that, from a policymaking perspective, there must be an effective cooperation between all stakeholders of a given tourist destination if we truly seek improving the functional relations between weather forecasting and tourists' propensity to travel.