Discovering the food travel preferences of university students

Sa？etak The main purposes of this study are to understand the perspectives of university students on food tourism and to discover their gastronomic travel preferences. 89 responses were gathered from a university in Izmir (on the west coast of Turkey) by using a structured interview technique. The data were analyzed through the descriptive methods including frequency analysis. Results indicate that the students' food travel preferences significantly vary due to their gastronomic motivations. The vast majority of these potential consumers consider going on a food-related travel in the future. Kebab, doner and baklava have an advantage over other dishes in terms of representing the region and becoming a brand. Participants believe that Turkey, Italy, Mexico, France and Spain are the top five countries that offer the best food experience. This study makes a considerable contribution to the literature on gastronomic preferences of young people through in-depth interviews. This exploratory research sheds light on this field of study for researchers, practitioners and food tourism professionals