A study on the motivations and experience value of Chinese working holiday maker in New Zealand

Abstract

Overseas working holiday is an emerging, transnational travel mode for youth groups. That is, working while travelling, youth can subsidize the cost of travel by working during the trip. In this paper, it takes Chinese working holiday maker in New Zealand for example, based on literature research, in-depth interviews, case studies, etc. The paper reports results from an interview study of 10 participants who have completed the working holiday to New Zealand. This paper investigates participants’ motivation and experience value gained from this program. It is found that the process of making the decision of working holiday is complex, but virtually all participants viewed working holiday as a very positive experience. The evidence suggests that working holiday experience brings benefits but the process is complex, reflected in many ways. And the benefits have particularity and are closely linked to participants’ own experience and environmental factors.