The interplay of hedonic trend and time pressure in the evaluation of multi-episode tour experiences

Tour experiences often comprise sequences of episodes, yet little is known in tourism research on how two common situational factors might alter individuals' evaluation of such multi-episode experiences: hedonic trend (i.e., the order of such episodes) and perceived time pressure (i.e., individuals' perception of limited available time). Two studies (i.e., an online experiment on a multi-city tour and a field experiment in a multi-site archaeological park) examine the interaction between these two factors by showing that individuals exhibit better evaluative responses (i.e., liking and revisit intention) to multi-episode tour experiences when such experiences have an ascending hedonic trend (i.e., their constituting episodes unfold in an increasing attractiveness order) rather than a descending one (i.e., the same episodes unfold in the opposite order). Importantly, individuals' perception of time pressure reverses this tendency. Our findings carry theoretical and managerial implications on how to design multi-episode tour experiences.