An Empirical Assessment of Students’ Tourist Preferences during the COVID-19 Pandemic from a Gender Perspective: Evidence from Poland

The purpose of this research is to reveal the tourist preferences of students during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a particular focus on differences between genders. This study was carried out in January 2021 and relied on the CAWI technique with a questionnaire distributed on social media. The snowball method was used to reach a wider audience. Valid questionnaires were retrieved from 870 respondents, primarily women (66.8%). The results demonstrate that tourist activity was witnessed despite the pandemic, but it differed between men and women. The latter travelled more often and for longer periods, and they chose August and September from the summer months. Although most travelling students sought active recreation, female students more frequently decided to be less active or opted for passive leisure during their stays. Unlike men, women sought safety and therefore mostly opted for individual apartments or hotels; staying with family or friends was a much less popular scenario for them, primarily because they feared it could expose their loved ones to the virus. For the whole group covered by the survey, sanitary and epidemiological restrictions, the reduced availability of attractions in tourist destinations, and increased prices were the main inconveniences that they faced when travelling in 2020.