Sample
The sample population for this study comprised Chinese tourists who visited one of the four major destinations in Yunnan Province between July 1 and August 1, 2004. Tourists participating in package tours were randomly selected to complete the questionnaire, which takes about 10 minutes to finish. The four destinations, namely Kunming, Dali,Lijiang, and Xishuangbannan, were chosen because they are considered the most famous and popular tourist attractions in Yunnan Province. Questionnaires were randomly distributed on the tour bus by package tour operators from a number of local travel agencies whose market base is domestic visitors. Respondents were approached and informed about
the purpose of the survey by the researchers in advance of being given
the questionnaire. A total of 420 usable questionnaires were collected.
A comparison of the demographic profiles of the respondents at these
four destinations did not detect any significant differences.