A choice model of airline passengers’ spending behaviour in the airport terminal

This study examines the influence of passengers’ travel-related factors, their intention to shop and the impact of socio-economic factors on their consumption behaviours while at the airport terminal. Three categories of consumption model – shopping, dining and airport entertainment – are developed to analyse different consumption behaviours. The results show that free time is the main factor that influences passengers to choose entertainment while waiting at the terminal, and the use of airline lounges has a negative influence on the extent of engagement in all three types of passenger consumption behaviour, especially dining. Furthermore, passengers’ dining expenditure has a positive effect on the extent of engagement in entertainment, but a negative influence on the extent of engagement in airport shopping. Passengers’ preferences of airport shopping area after they have cleared security is positively associated with the extent of engagement in both shopping and entertainment but negatively associated with the extent of engagement in dining activities.