ABSTRACT
Price or cost to the customer is introduced in Chapter 6 as one of the four primary Ps in the marketing mix. For leisure tourism, especially holiday choices, there are many who consider price to be the most important of all the marketing decisions because price fixes the terms of the voluntary exchange transaction between customers willing to buy and producers wishing to sell. Through the agreed terms of exchange, customers are attempting to maximize their perceptions of benefits and value for money as they choose from competing products on offer. Producers are aiming simultaneously to achieve targeted sales volume, sales revenue and market share while optimizing their return on investment. In competitive tourism markets, however, the customers’ influence over pricing is ultimately dominant.
