Gone With the Wind? A Longitudinal Analysis of Tourists’ Long-Term Recollections of Holiday Experiences

Understanding how memories are retained over time provides deeper insight into what makes experiences impactful and memorable in the long term. This study examines how tourists recall past experiences and identifies key elements that contribute to the transformation of tourism experiences into long-term memory. Using a longitudinal approach, this research tracked memory traces from a group tour in London through self-reporting and in-depth interviews conducted at three intervals: onsite, 3 weeks post-trip, and 3 months post-trip. Grounded theory analysis identified five key characteristics that shape the dynamics of long-term recollection in tourism experiences. The findings advance theoretical understanding by demonstrating how memory recollection influences the perceived significance of experiences through the appreciation of experience value and emotional responses. This study contributes to broader discussions on the lasting impact of tourism experiences and provides insights for designing memorable experiences in destination marketing and tourism product conceptualization.