Proposition of a Benefit Estimation Method for Quality Improvement in Multi-Destination Recreation Trips

This study proposes a recreation benefit estimation method for multi-destination trips when every visitor passes through a single gateway. Using the proposed method, the benefit of quality improvements in the nth site of a multi-destination trip can be measured by considering only the demand function of trips from the origin to the gateway. The demand function to the gateway, however, should take account of qualities in all the relevant sites. As a case study, we demonstrate the procedure and the usefulness of the proposed method by analyzing data of visits to Hong Kong and Macau. We compare the estimated benefit of this model with that of the approach proposed by Mendelsohn et al. (1992), yielding a ratio of 1.09. The empirical results demonstrate that the proposed model generates useful estimates and offers advantages over previous models in terms of convenience in data collection. Finally, we extend the model to incorporate multiple gateways