How staycation trip reflections affect life satisfaction Open Access

Staycation, as a form of local tourism, refers to vacations spent at home or nearby locations rather than abroad for tourism activities (James et al., 2017). This vacation style has gained popularity as a low-cost, time-saving and stress-free alternative to traditional vacations in foreign destinations. Vacations have become a lifestyle for many people in modern times. The craving for relaxation, escape from work and quality time with loved ones is deemed indispensable. This desire grew stronger during the pandemic when restrictions were placed on many other forms of entertainment (Lin et al., 2021; Sigala, 2020). During the pandemic, more people indicated an interest in luxury staycations, and some staycation providers even reported more than a 120% increase in bookings (Bhattacharyya, 2020). Governments also used staycation vouchers to stimulate local economy (Cvelbar et al., 2021; Wong et al., 2023). Therefore, the demand for staycation has surged to a historical high in the past few years, greatly impacting individual travel style and destination management.

The meaning of staycation has evolved over time. The term first appeared during the US economic downturn in 2008 when people started to rethink the connotation of traveling (James et al., 2017; Molz, 2009). Not only did the local vacation style alleviate the financial constraints of households but it also provided a spin on the temporal and spatial concepts in conventional traveling. The global pandemic in 2020–2022 also paved the way for the growing interest in staycation when travel activities were constrained. COVID-19 has imposed threats to people’s daily lives to different extents exacerbated through social distancing policies, stunning death tolls and negative media coverage, all heightening individual anxiety and stress. From the individual’s perspective, staycation during the pandemic allowed temporary mitigation of their grief and stress in difficult times and provided temporary psychological relief (Lin et al., 2021; Pichierri et al., 2023; Pratiwi and Novani, 2022).

Extant research on staycation indicates that staycation experiences during the COVID-19 era are commonly viewed as a means of stress coping through escapism from daily lives (Moon and Chan, 2022; Pichierri et al., 2023; Yan et al., 2022). Therefore, staycation was viewed as an emotion-based coping strategy through positive distractions divert one’s attention from the stressful event and relieve the stressor’s impacts on the individual’s well-being. In its light form, staycation offers an opportunity for an individual’s psychological detachment to attenuate strains from work and daily routines (Sonnentag and Fritz, 2015; Yan et al., 2022) and provided a short-term mental absence and break for the assimilation of an individual’s stress and enhancement of mental recovery.

While staycation represents a potential market under the new normal, current research on this topic is relatively limited, mostly focusing on pandemic-related coping strategies (Duman et al., 2020; James et al., 2017; Wong et al., 2023). As our lives has got back to normal after the pandemic and all travel restrictions relieved, it is time to reexamine the meaning of staycation and what they have to offer for life’s betterment. While staycation may not prevail as the top vacation choice as they did during the pandemic, it remains a popular domestic leisure option (Qiu et al., 2024; Saidin et al., 2024). To enrich the existing literature on staycation beyond the scope of pandemic risk-coping, it is essential to delve deeper into the leisure experience of this local vacation style by comparing the differences in the emotional attributions and perceived benefits during and after the pandemic period. From the practical standpoint, the comparative analysis of staycation during pandemic and postpandemic staycation experiences offers evidence that contributes to practical relevance in keeping abreast of the changing demands and expectations regarding staycation packages. These insights can be generalized to other leisure activities. Industry practitioners can enhance their staycation package offerings through recognizing the trip reflections valued by local tourists in the postpandemic era.

In this paper, it is argued that staycation will continue to serve as a convenient form of leisure getaways that worth further investigation. First of all, people’s experience during COVID-19 has prompted their risk awareness and travel aversion attitude, especially when the world is still facing turbulence for wars, natural disasters and social disorder. The uncertainties have driven changes in traveling preferences from long- to short-haul traveling and staycation (Saidin et al., 2024). In addition, hotels have started to recognize the potential of the staycation market segment as a stable source of revenue and a tool to normalize the seasonality of demand. Increasingly, hotels are launching innovative and attractive staycation packages catering to domestic and local markets all year round to lure local customer’s interests (Qiu et al., 2024). Finally, more and more, people seek catharsis to release the negative sentiments in reality whereby staycation could satisfy their illusion of traveling by offering an escape from reality and fulfilling a fantasy of extraordinariness (Moon and Chan, 2022). As a result, staycation after the pandemic is entering a new realm that goes beyond crises and stress coping, as a sustainable mode of leisure to generate psychological benefits for individuals.

Early research on staycation explored the characteristics and motivations associated with staycation as a new mode of travel (Besson, 2017; James et al., 2017). Subsequent studies during the pandemic predominantly focused on staycation’s role as a temporary coping mechanism that provides stress relief and psychological detachment during the crisis (Huang et al., 2024; Li et al., 2024; Lin et al., 2021; Misra et al., 2024; Wong et al., 2023; Yan et al., 2022). However, a notable gap exists regarding the lack of insights in acknowledging changes in staycation demands, with no empirical studies conducted on staycation since 2022. This research addresses this gap by conducting a longitudinal study that explores a theoretical framework incorporating trip reflection attributes and their impacts on life satisfaction model during and after the pandemic. This study stands out for being one of the first empirical investigations using post-2023 data following the formal conclusion of the pandemic, providing fresh insights into the evolving dynamics of staycation over time.

This study attempts to investigate the staycation experience through trip reflections, as well as the psychological benefits derived from such experience during and after the pandemic. Trip reflections refer to the thoughts and feelings retained in the minds of travelers after their leisure travel experience. Neal et al. (1999) have proposed a leisure life satisfaction model that suggests a relationship between positive trip reflections and overall life satisfaction (Unger and Kernan, 1983; Uysal et al., 2016). Accordingly, this paper adopts some of the identified trip reflections for the context of staycation, including perceived freedom from control, perceived freedom from work, involvement, arousal and spontaneity to investigate their impacts on enhancing leisure life satisfaction. In addition, the facilitating role of various psychological benefits is also incorporated in the model for a better understanding of the psychological process that enhances the quality of life. For this purpose, a variety of psychological benefits generated from the staycation experiences are investigated, including the implicit and long-term pursuit of the meaning of life, the explicit and immediate affective emotions and the enhanced interpersonal relationships. To compare the staycation experiences and their impacts during and after the pandemic, two stages of data collection were conducted with 328 and 454 respondents who had staycation experiences within the past six months. The surveys were undertaken in Macao SAR, where the leisure mode of staycation is popular due to the heavy promotion of the mega-hotels and the variety of services and entertainment available in-house.

The contributions of this research are threefold. First and foremost, this is the first research to compare the staycation experience during and after the pandemic and it highlights how staycation experiences have transformed since the pandemic through a comparative analysis. Second, this research examines the impacts of staycation as a form of leisure. Unlike previous studies where staycation is primarily viewed as a stress-coping alternative to regular traveling, this paper emphasizes the merits of staycation as a sustainable form of leisure and the results shed light for industry practitioners to seize this lucrative market. Third, it elucidates the mediating role of various psychological benefits on the trip reflection and life satisfaction process, which further enriches the literature on the dynamics of the interplay among trip experiences, the related psychological consequences, as well as the positive outcomes. Through the lens of staycation, the study gains a comprehensive understanding in the evolving tourist demands and attitudes toward recreation pursuits. The implications extend beyond staycation as the postpandemic trends have been observed to influence consumption patterns across various sectors and levels. The domestic consumption behaviors revealed in the study could also be generalized to other areas, such as work, education and other leisure activities, prompting further investigations into the postpandemic transformations within these domains.

Staycation research could be broadly grouped into three periods, as summarized in Table 1. Each research period is prompted by significant events that gear research in varied directions. The early staycation research (2009–2019) originated in response to the global recession in 2008, with staycations emerged to substitute the traditional costly travel activities. Studies in this period focused on the conceptualization of staycation and its characteristics. Then came the pandemic outbreak in 2019 that led to travel restrictions. As a result, staycation served as an alternative for travel, complemented by staycation vouchers offered by some countries to boost local economy. In this period (2020–2023), staycation research emphasized on the significance of staycation, its role to cope with pandemic-related anxiety and its contribution to psychological satisfaction and well-being. As the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the end of the pandemic in May 2023, the third phrase of research (2024 to present) has significantly reduced, mainly involving reviews of previous studies and suggestions for future trends. Detailed of the literature review across different periods will be discussed in the subsequent sections.

The term “staycation”, a combination of “stay” and “vacation”, is referred to as “a vacation that is spent at one’s home enjoying that entire home and one’s home environs have to offer” (Fox, 2009). The concept of “staycation” first emerged as a consequence of the worldwide economic recession in 2008 (Bronner and De Hoog, 2012; James et al., 2017). Bronner and De Hoog (2012) identify staycation travelers as a tourist typology segregated by the scope of the recession and its magnitude on individual’s economic confidence. They consider staycation a by-product for tourists who aim to economize on aspects of a holiday in the midst of the global crises with the recovery still anticipated. Therefore, staycation is considered an alternative to regular traveling when one travels to a destination closer to home hence cutting back on the travel expenses with shorter trips (Papatheodorou et al., 2010). Besides the financial relief, staycation also responds to the changing needs of tourists and their demands for tourism products. It is noted that people travel to nearby towns and areas to seek relaxation, escape from everyday lives, rediscover local culture and rejuvenate the mind and body (Pawłowska-Legwand and Matoga, 2016).

In the early staycation literature, Molz (2009) associates staycation with the ideology and meaning related to the pace of life within a dialectic between fast and slow pace and between moving and staying still. James et al. (2017) take a more pragmatic approach by segmenting staycation traveler profiles into four clusters through lifestyles of culture enthusiasts, adventurous eaters, socialites/partygoers, health-conscious individuals, entertainment buffs and art seekers. This segmentation provides insights for destination marketers and hospitality practitioners in designing travel packages for staycation travelers. However, there are still inclusive results regarding the impacts of the staycation experiences on individual’s subjective well-being. While some research has found it challenging to enhance individual’s wellness through staycation due to the limitation of time spent (Pyke et al., 2016), others uphold the potential benefits of the domestic vacation. Some research suggests that individuals are capable of everyday aesthetic enjoyment from staycation holidays that enhance restoration in a familiar environment despite the absence of novelty and escapism as in regular travel (Ashbullby et al., 2013; Besson, 2017). It is also noted although the types of activities people engage in their leisure time at home or during short trips are different, the pleasure and well-being impacts remain similar (De Bloom et al., 2017). It appears that a key feature of an effective staycation is the physical and mental disengagement from home and work for complete psychological detachment and pathway for mental recovery.

Following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 until 2023, there is a proliferation of staycation research mostly focusing on the individual’s motivations and outcomes derived from the staycation experience during the crisis (Cvelbar et al., 2021; Jacobsen et al., 2023; Lin et al., 2021; Moon and Chan, 2022; Pichierri et al., 2023; Wong et al., 2023; Yan et al., 2022). Against the backdrop of this unprecedented threat to human lives, COVID-19 has caused great turbulence in the world, affecting people’s way of life, ravaging the world’s order and twisting the meaning of leisure (Jacobsen et al., 2023). Tourism industry crashed to a halt with national lockdowns and travel bans, making traveling in any form extremely difficult or virtually impossible. It is in this context that the concept of “staycation” prevails, both as a panacea for hotel’s sustainability, and a means to uphold the quality of life of residents amid hardship from the pandemic.

Most of this research attributes the motivations for staycations during pandemic to the fantasy of traveling, which was restricted in reality. In essence, the staycation experience satisfies tourist’s perception of achieving extraordinariness (for something that does not happen easily within the realm of daily life during the pandemic) and effectively induces their subjective fantasy of discovery and newness while confined within the acquainted environment (Jacobsen et al., 2023; Moon and Chan, 2022).

Other pandemic-specific concepts adopted to explain the motivations for staycation include individual’s attitude toward risk aversion and psychological detachment (Pichierri et al., 2023; Yan et al., 2022). In this vein, Huang et al. (2024) propose a framework from protection motivation theory, attributing staycation intention from perceived risk, protection motivation and travel anxiety. Other research also suggests that risk aversion, as well as the related socio-emotional distress, are profound phenomena during the pandemic, and staycation is considered a coping tool to soothe negative emotions through a series of psychological mechanisms (Wong et al., 2023; Yan et al., 2022). Under the severe threat of the pandemic, individuals seek resources that they could lean on for restoration. The research of Lin et al. (2021) indicates that individuals’ risk aversion during the affects their community attachment for seeking comfort and counteracting the risk, which in turn increases their propensity for local staycation. Similarly, for individuals who have been exposed to prolonged anxiety and distress during the pandemic, staycation is considered a restoration resource to relieve stress (Wong et al., 2023). Accordingly, staycation effectively triggers a transformative restoration mechanism by inciting feelings of being away and creating fascination to fortify individual’s psychological capital (Lin et al., 2021; Wong et al., 2023).

Psychological detachment is noted as another prominent motive for taking staycations during the pandemic (Lin et al., 2021; Yan et al., 2022). In the context of staycation, psychological detachment represents a short-term mental break from work and chores through undertaking touristic activities close to home. It has been long asserted that this temporary break from work frees individuals from the stressors and forges a recovery process to recoup physical and psychological resources necessary for the individual’s well-being (Newman et al., 2014). The staycation experience facilitates psychological detachment through cognitively mitigating stress, internalizing pressure and undergoing a mental recovery transformation (Yan et al., 2022). Therefore, psychological detachment engendered through staycation is deemed to be able to foster relaxation and attenuate individual’s daily mental strains, not limited to situations of crises.

Another stream of staycation research during the pandemic extends to exploring staycation as a marketing strategy and its impact on individuals’ well-being and life satisfaction (Li et al., 2024; Liu et al., 2023; Misra et al., 2024). Building upon the stress-coping function of staycation, Misra et al. (2024) suggest the moderating effect of staycation on the relationship between perceived stress and psychological well-being. Furthermore, life satisfaction is found to be heightened through travel motivations and satisfaction during the staycation experience (Liu et al., 2023). In addition, Li et al. (2024) adopt sentiment analysis to investigate hotel-related factors affecting customers’ staycation experiences and propose marketing strategies for hotel to cater to the staycation market.

As the world order is restored after the pandemic, staycation has lost its glamour and related research has dwindled to a minimal level. To the best of our knowledge, there are no empirical studies on staycation with data set after the conclusion of the pandemic in 2023. Recent research on staycation primarily revolves around reviewing previous studies and suggesting future research trends and directions (Kou et al., 2024; Mulvey et al., 2024).

This is largely due to the focus on staycation as a repercussion of the crises. While staycation is no longer the sole option for traveling, it is likely to endure for the benefits it offers as a form of leisure (Jacobsen et al., 2023; Moon and Chan, 2022; Pichierri et al., 2023; Qiu et al., 2024). While individuals agree that staycation is not a real holiday, many of them are able to find pleasure in local excursions during the pandemic and appreciate the strengthened family bonding and a fresh contemplation on the meaning of traveling (Jacobsen et al., 2023). It is noted that while the staycation experience during the pandemic has kindled individuals’ interests in domestic traveling, and their future purchase intention largely depends on what the staycation packages can offer, including various themes and discounts (Moon and Chan, 2022). Staycation is becoming an option for consumers as a substitute for celebrating special events or when traveling abroad is not feasible for personal reasons. Qiu et al. (2024) attempt to delineate the staycation market segments by examining customers’ preferences for different staycation packages. This approach goes back to the marketing basics and focuses on how the attributes and design of the staycation packages could lure staycation customers in the long run. Following the changes in the tourism industry dynamics as well as the demand and behaviors of tourists after the pandemic, it is crucial for marketers to reexamine staycation as a lifestyle and promote its positive benefits to local customers for broadening their tourism product offerings (Jacobsen et al., 2023; Wong et al., 2023).

There is a plethora of studies that link tourism with individual well-being and life satisfaction (Hosany et al., 2022; Neal et al., 2007; Sirgy et al., 2010; Smith and Diekmann, 2017; Uysal et al., 2016). Tourism is commonly regarded as an experiential product and the quality of trip experiences is a complex concept subject to personal and subjective appraisal (Knobloch et al., 2017). Unlike other consumption products that emphasize hedonic enjoyment, tourism has a broader influence on people’s lives beyond the materialistic consumption experience, capable of making impacts on individual’s well-being and life satisfaction. In this study, subjective well-being, quality of life and life satisfaction are used interchangeably to represent the sense of contentment people experienced for a fulfilling life.

This study follows the model of Neal et al. (2007) to study staycation experiences in the form of trip reflections and examine their impacts on individuals’ life satisfaction. This model postulates that satisfaction with the leisure life domain manifested through positive trip reflections will spill over to overall life satisfaction. Trip reflections are memories that linger in the mind of the travelers after the trip. It is argued that the holistic trip experience is derived from both the tourism services during the trip and the reflections after the trip (Neal et al., 1999, 2007). Sirgy et al. (2010) later adopted the model to study how specific trip experiences affect satisfaction on other life domains, which together aggregate to the overall life satisfaction. Since then, the concept of life satisfaction or quality of life has become commonly associated with vacation experience in different contexts. This includes comparative analyses of pre- and post-vacation experience (Gilbert and Abdullah, 2004), studies on motivations for holiday travel (McCabe, 2009) and application of the model among different market segments (Dolnicar et al., 2012; Kim et al., 2015).

Like other tourism products, staycation is becoming a lifestyle and is presumed to offer positive psychological benefits to travelers. This study aims to apply the life satisfaction model of Neal et al. (2007) to explore the psychological process that links staycation experiences with personal enrichment and their well-being in the post-pandemic era. All hypotheses in the study are built upon based on this theoretical framework, attributing staycation trip reflections to individual’s life satisfaction.

There are different approaches for measuring travel experiences related to a memorable and happy trip experience. Early research simply decomposes trip experience into impacts on various life domains and associates the related satisfaction with the overall satisfaction of life (Gilbert and Abdullah, 2004; Sirgy et al., 2010). Kim et al. (2012) first advocate the significance of a memorable tourism experience and define it as a “tourism experience remembered and recalled after the event has occurred”. They also developed a comprehensive seven-item scale to measure this experience through hedonism, novelty, local culture, refreshment, meaningfulness, involvement and knowledge. While this definition provides the basis for measuring trip experience, it is criticized for the subjective conceptualization of memorable experience, and that the scale is more relevant for generic tourism context rather than the specific context of a particular kind of tourism (Hosany et al., 2022). Subsequent research on tourism experience modifies the model from Kim et al. (2012) to include context‐specific dimensions appropriate for the subject under investigation. Other research selects and combines measures from various studies. As an example, Shin et al. (2024) explore the nature of a happy travel experience through selecting measures of freedom, social, achievement and serendipity to represent hedonic, eudaimonic and engagement dimensions.

While the service/activities encountered during the trip capture the instant and transitory perceptions from the travelers, it is the mental process in the form of individuals’ memory that materializes the experience and allows revival of the feelings regarding the trip even after a long time (Gilbert and Abdullah, 2004; Kim et al., 2012; Larsen, 2007). A recollection of the trip experience and its relevance to the individual will be drawn when travelers reflect on their trip within a temporal–spatial relation (Tulving, 2002). The specific trip reflections proposed by Neal et al. (1999, 2007) regarding trip experiences include perceived freedom from control, perceived freedom from work, involvement, arousal, mastery and spontaneity. Besides reflection of mastery, which is not applicable in the context of staycation, other trip reflections are believed to bear a positive relationship with leisure life satisfaction as they create pleasant and prolonged memories for long-term happiness. Perceived freedom from control refers to unconstrained actions one could undertake voluntarily without being subject to coercion or obligations (Neal et al., 1999). Similarly, perceived freedom from work represents an absence of obligations to perform tasks which allows one to rest and relax arbitrarily (Neal et al., 1999). Both forms of freedom display an illusion for individuals that they are in control and possess the choice of action or inaction. When a sense of freedom is associated with leisure activity (including staycation), it offers the psychological benefits of escape to relief from mundane routines, which enhances the individual’s subjective well-being (Sirgy et al., 2017).

While perceived freedom from control and work denotes the absence of constraints during the trip, the reflection of involvement, arousal and spontaneity portrays what travelers do to engage in the trip experience and make it unique. Involvement is related to the intensity of consumption and absorption when one is engaged in trip-related activities (Neal et al., 1999). Involvement, being an important psychographic construct, is noted to have profound impacts on customer satisfaction (Lee and Beeler, 2009). In the context of tourism, when individuals are highly involved in tourism programs, activities and interactions, they are more likely to be satisfied with the trip experience and leisure life (Kim et al., 2015; Sthapit and Coudounaris, 2018).

The reflection of arousal refers to how the extent an individual feels excited, stimulated, exhilarated and inspired by the trip (Neal et al., 1999). Arousal is noted for its strong association with positivity, which translates into tourism experience, denotes the ability for individuals to generate upbeat sentiments, foster mental health, influence travel satisfaction and provoke subjective well-being (Bigné et al., 2005; Farber and Hall, 2007). On the other hand, spontaneity is characterized as ad hoc activities/events related to the trip that are not routine, planned or anticipated (Neal et al., 1999). The notions of surprise and unexpectedness within the reflection of spontaneity contribute to the uniqueness of the trip and make it a memorable and meaningful experience that enhances satisfaction of the leisure life (Packer and Gill, 2016).

Given the above rationale, the first set of hypotheses related to trip reflections are proposed:

This study deems the impact of staycation experiences on life satisfaction a psychological process that commences from pleasant reflections from the trip which trigger a series of psychological benefits. Therefore, the mediating roles of psychological benefits that bridge the trip experiences and life satisfaction are investigated. For this purpose, three types of psychological benefits are considered, including affective emotions, meaning of life and enhanced relationships.

Affective emotions and meaning of life are psychological benefits generated within the internal realm of an individual; the former is considered a more direct and immediate response to the experience, whereas the latter imposes a more profound and long-term effect on the individual after undergoing a process of internalization and psychological precipitation. Both positive emotions and the meaning of life are widely recognized as important factors that influence an individual’s trip experience and enhance the quality of life (Hosany et al., 2022; Shin et al., 2024; Sirgy et al., 2010). Positive emotions during a trip refer to the feeling of joy and contentment, which leads to immediate pleasure and hedonic happiness (Shin et al., 2024; Sirgy et al., 2017; Smith and Diekmann, 2017). The emotions also contribute to an individual’s repertoires of memory, hence leading to increased life satisfaction (Yang et al., 2023).

On the other hand, meaningful experience during the trip contributes to eudaimonic happiness through personal growth, social contribution and self-actualization (Shin et al., 2024; Smith and Diekmann, 2017). Such illumination of life helps to foster individuals’ values and beliefs and instill their fulfillment and well-being. Regarding trip experience, the provoked pleasant emotions in the travel adventure together with the sense of meaning through accomplishments targets are intertwined to create a holistic trip experience and derive life betterment (Shin et al., 2024).

In addition to the individual’s psychological benefits, the staycation experience also provides benefits related to interpersonal relationships. Bonding with family members is noted to be a prominent benefit of the travel process as it provides time and space for the people traveling together to engage and know each other better (Zhang, 2023). As a result, the trip experience allows an enhanced relationships between friends and family. It is particularly true in the case of staycation when the strengthened relationship lends support to each other to tide over the difficult times (Fritz et al., 2024). This forged relationship is presumed to draw satisfaction in the social domain and hence contributes to the individual’s life satisfaction.

Given the above rationale, the following hypotheses are proposed:

The conceptual model of the research and proposed hypotheses are presented in Figure 1.

This study adopted a quantitative approach to examine how psychological benefits were generated from the staycation experience and how such experience eventually led to individual’s life satisfaction during and after the pandemic. The data was collected in Macao SAR, where staycation has experienced a surge during the pandemic due to the combined efforts of the local government and the mega hotel resorts. During the pandemic, the Macao SAR Government officially launched and partially funded a series of staycation initiatives that attracted around 140,000 visitors and secured US$7m in economic benefits within three months (Macao Daily News, 2021). In addition, the integrated hotel resorts in Macao also offer world-class facilities and a variety of entertainment for staycation tourists in one spot (Wong et al., 2023). Finally, the Macao economy is relatively affluent, with an average monthly household income of US$7,500 and an unemployment rate of 2.3% (Macao Statistics and Census Service, 2023). Together, these factors have supported the consumption of staycation in the local community.

Two stages of data were collected in Macao SAR. The first round of data was collected in July 2021 during the traditional peak season of summer holidays. During this period, the pandemic had lingered for over one year and travel activities were restricted. Staycation was the only alternative for traveling and the government had provided subsidies to encourage local staycations. Eventually, WHO officially declared the end of the pandemic in May 2023 (United Nation, 2023), but public was still cautious about the pandemic risks. The second round of data took place in October 2023 during the China National Day holidays, five months after the WHO declaration, as people had recouped their confidence in travelling. The Macao Government actually reported record-high visitor arrivals and hotel occupancy rates during this period since the COVID-19 outbreak (MGTO, 2023). Therefore, the samples collected during the two collection periods could truly represent staycation experiences during and after the pandemic.

In this study, staycation is defined as one that includes at least one overnight stay in a local hotel since an overnight away from home would allow better mental recovery through psychological detachment (De Bloom et al., 2017). Data were collected via convenience sampling through a self-administered online questionnaire. During the pandemic, personal contacts were not encouraged, therefore online data collection was the only possible means to approach the prospective respondents. The study endeavored to mitigate the generalizability concerns linked with convenience sampling by strategically selecting online platforms for data dissemination and filtering out unsuitable respondents through careful screening. As the targeted population was local residents who had recent staycation experience, questionnaires were distributed online through social media communities and forums that shared Macao news and leisure activities. Individuals engaged in this kind of sharing are more likely to be interested in local staycation activities, rendering the sample potentially representative of the population. Respondents were assured of the confidentiality and anonymity of their information and they were required to indicate their consent to participate in the survey before the questionnaire commenced. In addition, to warrant that the respondents were suitable for the research purpose, two screening questions were set to ensure that they were local Macao residents and had stayed in a Macao hotel in the past six months. The second phase of data collection followed the same process to ensure comparability between the two rounds of data.

Each round of data collection lasted for 10 days, resulting in a total of 384 and 542 responses for the two periods. After eliminating incomplete or invalid responses, 328 and 454 valid responses were retained for the two rounds of data collection, respectively, resulting in a response rate of 85.2% and 83.8%. The sample size was deemed sufficient as there are more than 10 observations for each indicator (Hair, 2009). As shown in Table 2, the respondents were mostly female, which constituted 61% of the sample in the first round (T1) and 66.7% in the second round (T2). Regarding age, most of the respondents were below 35 years old (73.2% in T1 and 81.5% in T2). The relatively young respondent profile could be attributed to the fact that staycation being a buzzword is more appealing to younger people. The youthful age distribution aligns with other staycation studies during the pandemic (Liu et al., 2023; Misra et al., 2024; Wong et al., 2023). Most of the sample had education at undergraduate level or above (93.3% in T1 and 99.6% in T2). Around 35.4% (T1) and 41.6% (T2) of the respondents reported a monthly income of less than MOP 10,000.

Measurement scales are adopted from validated scale of previous studies and adapted for the context of staycation. The questionnaire was first designed in English and then translated to Chinese through back–back method to eliminate possible translation errors and to ensure the equivalence of the two versions. Two bilingual researchers also reviewed the questionnaire again for the overall appropriateness of the items and a pilot test with 30 respondents was conducted for validity and clarity check. The pilot test took place before the formal questionnaire distribution and the participants were mostly tourism faculty and students in a local university. Any ambiguities spotted in the questionnaire wordings were adjusted to ensure the clarity of the questionnaire presentation. The final questionnaire includes the constructs, including trip reflections of staycation experiences, positive emotions, meaning of life, enhanced relationships and life satisfaction.

Trip reflections of staycation reflections include constructs for perceived freedom from control, perceived freedom from work, involvement, arousal and spontaneity ( Appendix). Each construct includes three items adapted from Neal et al. (2007). The psychological benefits related to staycation assessments are derived from the emotional benefits and enhancement to life meanings and relationships. To this end, an eight-item measurement is adapted for the assessments of positive emotions (Fredrickson et al., 2003), and three-item scales are adapted from Dillette et al. (2018) regarding the constructs of meaning and enhanced relationships respectively. Outcomes of staycation are measured through a five-item measurement on life satisfaction (Sirgy et al., 2010). Gender, age and education are included as the control variables for internal validity, as these personal factors are deemed to have broad influences on individuals’ preferences such as travel style and experience, along with their reflections on life, hence affecting the studied variables (Kim and Kim, 2020). All the items are measured using a seven-point Likert scale from 1 = strongly disagree to 7 = strongly agree.

Data were analyzed with IBM SPSS 26 for the descriptive statistics, the t-test and the multiple regression analysis. Structural equation modeling (SEM)-AMOS was used to examine the measurement model. AMOS is a covariance-based SEM tool commonly adopted for examining complex measurement models and structural paths that produces robust results (Astrachan et al., 2014). The mediating effects were then investigated through the PROCESS macro 3.5 for SPSS using 5,000 bootstrapping samples with 95% bias-corrected confidence intervals (CIs). PROCESS macro Model 4 is capable of generating simulations for bootstrap CIs and indirect effects, hence it is commonly used for testing the mediating effects in a hypotheses (Hayes and Rockwood, 2017).

The study also examined the common method bias through Harman’s one-factor test. For this purpose, all items in the model were loaded as a single factor in the exploratory factor analysis. The principal component analysis exhibited that the total variance extracted by one factor were 47.8% in T1 and 35.5% in T2. In both cases, the one factor explained less than 50% of the total variance, hence the common method bias was not a concern in the study.

The mean and standard deviation of the staycation related constructs during and after the pandemic are summarized in Table 3. T-test is also performed to examine any significant differences between the means of the two periods (T1 and T2). It is noted that the means for most of the trip reflections and psychological benefits are significantly lower in the post pandemic period, except for arousal, meaning and life satisfaction. From the results, it could be deducted that instant reflections and benefits derived from the staycation experiences such as perceived freedom from control and work, involvement, spontaneity, positive emotions and enhanced relationships do not seem to uphold at a high level after the pandemic. On the other hand, the deeper and longer-term contemplation of life meaning and satisfaction do not exhibit significant differences. Arousal does not exhibit differences between the two periods due to the limited applications of arousal in the context of staycation, where the destination and activities are within the individual’s comfort zone. The preliminary analysis supports the initial conjecture that staycation experience provides different meanings to individuals after the pandemic.

In addition, the intercorrelations among the variables and the Cronbach’s alpha coefficients are exhibited in Table 4. It is noted that all variables bear significant positive correlations during the pandemic (T1) and post pandemic (T2) (p < 0.001). This lends preliminary support to the hypotheses. Regarding the reliability, Cronbach’s alpha during pandemic ranges from 0.84 to 0.97, whereas that of the postpandemic period ranges from 0.88 to 0.95, both ranges are well above the recommended threshold of 0.7, hence indicating sufficient internal consistency.

The study also uses SEM-AMOS to assess the measurement model through confirmatory factor analysis as shown in Table 5. The measurement model includes nine constructs and indicates good model fit during the pandemic with χ²/df = 2.73, CFI = 0.95, GFI = 0.91, NNFI = 0.94, RMSEA = 0.06, SRMR = 0.05. The measurement model after the pandemic also indicates good fit with χ²/df = 2.91, CFI = 0.94, GFI = 0.90, NNFI = 0.92, RMSEA = 0.05, SRMR = 0.04. These values are within the threshold suggested by Kline (1998) suggesting an adequate measurement model. The composite reliability coefficients for both periods are well above 0.7, representing internal consistency of the scales. In addition, convergent validity is assured for both periods as the average variance extracted (AVE) are all greater than 0.5. The discriminant validity for both periods are also warranted for the distinction between the constructs as the squared root of AVE of each construct is greater than the inter-factor correlations of the constructs (Fornell and Larcker, 1981). In addition, the standardized coefficients on each scale were high, ranging from 0.69 to 0.96 during the pandemic and from 0.79 to 092 after the pandemic, all significant at the 0.01 level.

For H1–H5 regarding the impacts of staycation trip reflections on life satisfaction, multiple regression analysis is conducted for T1 and T2. Before the testing of hypotheses, the variance inflation factors (VIFs) of the independent variables were examined for the purpose of multicollinearity diagnostics. All VIF were below 1.60, demonstrating no multicollinearity concern. The results (Table 6) indicated that during the pandemic (T1), staycation trip reflections regarding perceived freedom from control (β = 0.14, p < 0.05), perceived freedom from work (β = 0.17, p < 0.05) and spontaneity (β = 0.40, p < 0.001) have significant effects of individuals life satisfaction. Therefore, H1, H2 and H5 are supported during the pandemic, but not H3 and H4. After the pandemic, a different set of trip reflections are found to have impact on life satisfaction, including perceived freedom from work (β = 0.23, p < 0.001), involvement (β = 0.26, p < 0.001) and arousal (β = 0.22, p < 0.01). Therefore, H2, H3 and H4 are supported after the pandemic but not H1 and H5. The results indicated two distinct set of trip reflections related to the staycation experience that impact individual’s life satisfaction in the two period of time. During the pandemic, people took staycation primarily to endure and recuperate from the hardship, therefore trip reflections related to freedom from control and work and spontaneity will offer an oasis for escape and contribute the individual’s well-being. After the pandemic, staycation-taking is a choice of leisure and the focus will be on the pleasure the experience could provide, and therefore the reflections related to freedom from work, involvement and arousal will be more significant to the well-being of individuals.

The study then tests the mediating effect of psychological benefits, including positive emotions, meaning of life and enhanced relationships from the staycation experiences. From the previous structural parameter estimates, it is noted that some trip reflections related to staycation are not significant and they are purposefully excluded in the mediation analysis. As such, the impacts of the three mediators will be tested between perceived freedom from control, freedom from work, spontaneity and life satisfaction for the pandemic period. On the other hand, mediating effects between perceived freedom from work, involvement, arousal and life satisfaction will be assessed in the postpandemic period.

Hayes’ PROCESS Model 4 is used to examine the indirect paths related to the mediators based on 5,000 bootstrapped samples within a 95% CI. The results are shown in Table 7. For example, during the pandemic, positive emotion imposes significant mediating effects between the path of staycation trip reflections regarding perceived freedom from control and the overall life satisfaction (b = 0.41, SE = 0.05, p < 0.001, 95% CI = 0.32–0.51). Similar mediating effects are noted on freedom from work and life satisfaction relationship (b = 0.36, SE = 0.04, p < 0.001, 95% CI = 0.28–0.45) and that between spontaneity and life satisfaction (b = 0.34, SE = 0.04, p < 0.001, 95% CI = 0.26–0.43). Indirect effects are signified through the p-value of the coefficients and the nonzero coverage between the upper and lower CIs. By the same token, results regarding the mediating effect of positive emotions are also valid in T2, hence supporting H6. The results indicate that all indirect paths are significant, and therefore validating the mediating effects of positive emotions, meanings of life and enhanced relationships in both the pandemic and postpandemic period. Therefore, H6–H8 are all supported.

Previous staycation studies have been limited to exploring the differences between staycation and the traditional travel mode, and merits are accredited to staycations for its function to offer a temporary getaway and psychological detachment from routine (De Bloom et al., 2017; Liu et al., 2023; Molz, 2009). However, there is a lack of comparative studies to understand the impacts of staycation at different situations. Notably, there have been no empirical studies with data set post-2023 to explore staycation after the official declaration of the end of the pandemic. This longitudinal study addresses this gap by presenting a comparative analysis of staycation across the pandemic and postpandemic period. The preliminary t-test results indicate that the trip reflections and benefits that lead to instant gratifications are more significant during the pandemic. In contrast, the long-term benefits such as meaning of life and life satisfaction associated with more lasting and sustained impacts remain at the same level. The findings alert tourism practitioners regarding the constantly evolving market dynamics and their impacts on customer preferences and behaviors. They highlight the importance for practitioners to keep close ties with customers and respond to their emerging demands.

The results also indicate two distinct sets of staycation trip reflections that impact individuals’ life satisfaction in the two periods of time. During the pandemic, people took staycation primarily to endure and recuperate from the hardship, therefore trip reflections related to freedom from control and work and spontaneity offer an oasis for escape and contribute to the individual’s well-being. The finding echoes other staycation research during the pandemic, indicating that travel motivations for relaxation and escape (similar to freedom and spontaneity) have a profound effect on restoration and recouping psychological capital (Lin et al., 2021; Wong et al., 2023). However, the role of involvement appears to be ambiguous – while it does not significantly impact individual’s wellbeing directly, Lin et al. (2021) suggests that it may bear an indirect moderating effect on psychological capital. After the pandemic, staycation-taking is a choice of leisure and the focus is on the pleasure the experience could provide. Therefore, the reflections related to freedom from work, involvement and arousal are more significant. As there are no empirical studies on staycation postpandemic, the results need validation in future research. These findings indicate shifts in tourists’ behaviors and preferences in the two periods, underscoring the dynamic nature of trip reflections that evolve overtime in response to societal needs. Specifically, understanding the significance of individual trip reflections under varying conditions offers valuable managerial insights for the industry to leverage these findings. Hotel and tourism operators could incorporate strategies centering on appropriate trip reflections to carter to staycation customers postpandemic. In addition, it should be recognized that the macro-environment, including economic, political and environmental situation, affects the trip experiences desired by tourists. Future research examining the magnitude and characteristics of changes in the demand for trip reflections at different times will help to consummate the understanding of life satisfaction derived from travel experiences.

Finally, positive emotions, the meaning of life and enhanced relationships are investigated for their mediating effects that bridge the trip reflections and life satisfaction. All mediating roles are significant both during the pandemic and postpandemic. Previous research has been limited in linking staycation experience to life satisfaction, either as an indirect moderator or solely through the mediating effect of travel satisfaction (Liu et al., 2023; Misra et al., 2024). The evidence from this study provides empirical support to operationalize on a more comprehensive and dynamic perspective regarding how various mediators effectively connect an individual’s staycation experience and their emotional and psychological contentment of life.

This research provides a few important theoretical contributions. First, despite the proliferation of staycation research during the pandemic, they tend to be overly focused on the distress-coping mechanism and distinct characteristics of staycation within the context of the pandemic (Lin et al., 2021; Pichierri et al., 2023; Pratiwi and Novani, 2022). While previous research primarily associated this local tourism style with crises, further investigation of staycation after the pandemic is lacking. Staycation remains a popular leisure after the pandemic due to people’s increasing risk aversion propensity, heavy promotion by tourism and hotel operators and individual’s fantasy of escapism (Qiu et al., 2024; Saidin et al., 2024). Therefore, this study reverts to the basis of staycation as a leisure activity, and through a comparative analysis, delves into the tourists’ trip reflection in different periods to understand how the staycation experience benefits their lives. This is believed to be the first study that compares the staycation experience during and after the pandemic, from which insights are shed on the changing demands of the market.

Second, the study attempts to investigate the staycation experience through the life satisfaction model (Neal et al., 1999, 2007). This contributes to the extant literature by providing a more comprehensive understanding from tourists’ perspectives of how the staycation experiences are drawn from memory retrievals through trip reflections. The results indicate that the effectiveness of staycation’s psychological reflections and benefits in improving life quality depends on the level of stress and the state of mind of individuals. In situations of distress, the staycation experience facilitates a sense of risk aversion and escapism to prompt a state of psychological detachment, which mitigates stress and initiates the mental recovery process (Yan et al., 2022). If taken as a lifestyle for daily pleasure and relaxation, the staycation experience is noted to be connected with immersive reactions and a work-free environment for physical and mental rejuvenation and for boosting energy after the short break. These findings allow a better understanding of the psychological enhancement of the lifestyle domain associated with the staycation experience. It also echoes previous research that satisfaction of trip experience as one of the individual’s life domains contributes to overall life satisfaction (Neal et al., 2007; Uysal et al., 2016).

Finally, the study elucidates the pathways of three psychological benefits as mediators in the relationship between trip reflections and life satisfaction, each denoting different roles complementary to each other. From the individual level, both the immediate positive emotions and the deep contemplation of life meaning from the trip contribute to improved mental health and enhanced the purpose of life. The benefits also derive from revamping relationships with loved ones, rediscovering oneself and others and creating a sense of harmony in life through trip memories and reflections. Taken together, the findings provide empirical support on how trip reflections and psychological benefits are interwoven in the staycation experience for a fulfilling life.

It is noteworthy that staycation is still one of the prominent travel trends going on around the world (Carey, 2024). More people indicate that they are planning for a staycation holiday, or even a couple of staycation holidays, in the near term. Staycation continues to draw the attention of tourists for the convenience, budget-friendliness and the growing interest in the hidden gems within the border. From this perspective, the findings of the study are timely and they offer practical insights to promote and design staycation packages for tourism and destination marketers.

Taken together, the findings shed lights on the formulation of the hotel and tourism strategies across all levels. From the top level, companies need to vigilantly monitor shifts in tourism demands and tourist behaviors and enact appropriate policies to cater to the local market. Intervention such as flexible check-in and check-out hours, cancellation policies, yearly plans and special discounts for local tourists, especially during off-peak seasons, prove effective not only in generating economic returns but also in fostering relationships with the local community and garnering their support for future tourism initiatives. From the functional level, the insights from the study also inspire marketing and production innovations. Realizing the significance of the valued trip reflections post-pandemic, practitioners could collaborate across departments to launch initiatives that target the leisure needs of local markets. This joint effort demonstrates the company’s commitment to this customer segment. As a result, operations and marketing teams could collaborate on designing and promoting activities and programs that align with the attributes of the trip reflections and pathways indicated in the findings.

During the postpandemic era, staycation programs, as well as other tourism offerings, should focus on creating experience that provide profound personal significance and contribute to individuals’ relationship and overall life satisfaction, particularly following the challenging period endured during the pandemic. Some noteworthy suggestions are provided for staycation program design and promotion are derived from the findings. For instance, the study indicates that perceived freedom from work, involvement and arousal are the most significant trip reflections after the pandemic in engendering personal life satisfaction. It is paramount that individuals feel detachment from work during a staycation. Staycation holidays are usually short and spread all year round, and it is not limited to the hot season. In a way, this offers an opportunity for hotels and tourism sites to establish stable revenue at times when demand is low. In fact, staycation packages could be offered and promoted in months when public holidays are lacking. The package could be bundled with relaxing activities such as wine tasting and spa experience for a sensuous escape and pastime for local tourists amid their busy work schedule.

In addition, people are looking for a unique experience during their staycation and they are easily influenced by information from social media (Moon and Chan, 2022). Staycation providers could focus on special themes and activities that spark individuals’ curiosity and allow them to immerse in a unique and exotic setting that is not common in daily life. This includes the cultural appreciation of local arts, mini music festivals, culinary delights and peculiar natural scenery. Together with the captivating visuals and intricate stories posted on social media, marketers are able to create a buzz effect to arouse the excitement and anticipation of the staycation experience and engage potential customers. Trip reflections of involvement could also be triggered through engagement in trip-related activities and people, including wellness and yoga classes, art workshops and local music concerts, where participants are able to interact with different people and foster a sense of community for lasting memories.

Finally, staycation packages need to take into consideration the association of staycation experience with positive emotions, seeking life meanings and enhancing relationships. To aid customers in achieving their desired psychological benefits from the staycation experience, the service providers need to pay attention to their operations and implementations from different perspectives. Enhanced relationships could be achieved through a staycation program design specifically tailored for targets of different types of relationships, such as couples, friends and family. To facilitate positive emotions of customers, service quality is the paramount consideration, staff needs to serve with smiling faces and put customer’s needs at their priority. Seeking life meaning may be the hardest to achieve as value and expectations vary by individuals, but service providers, when paying attention to corporate social responsibility and leading by example, may provide inspiration for customers on their own reflections during their staycation holidays.

The current study has several limitations. First, the staycation market and its demand are dynamic which changes and evolves over time. Although the study has taken a longitudinal approach to address the changes in staycation demands in two periods, future studies are recommended in future periods when there are distinct changes in the market conditions. Second, the study is conducted in Macao where staycation is a popular leisure activity, the results may not apply to other regions and other cultures under different market and economic conditions, cross-country studies are recommended to validate the results in different contexts. Third, the study focused on staycation trip reflections and its psychological benefits to examine their impacts on individual life satisfaction. Other benefits from staycation and their consequences could be considered to understand different perspectives of individuals’ considerations and their behavioral intentions. Finally, the current study adopts an exploratory approach to examine the impacts of staycation trip reflections on life satisfaction. This area of research is still developing, lacking strong theoretical foundations. Future studies could incorporate established theories to better explain the life satisfaction model and strengthen the framework within the field of tourism.

Staycation has garnered significant attention during the pandemic and is deemed an effective coping tool in response to the hardship encountered. However, it is also crucial to understand how the staycation experience has evolved, especially now that the pandemic is waning. The study contributes to the existing literature by offering an in-depth comparative analysis on the changing demands on leisure activities through the lens of staycation. The findings reveal distinct experiences sought by local visitors at different time periods. Specifically, trip reflections linked to escape (freedom from control, freedom from work and spontaneity) had a more profound impact on well-being during the pandemic, whereas trip reflections related to immersion (involvement and arousal) along with freedom from work were more significant after the pandemic. The study also explores various pathways for this relationship including positive emotions, meanings of life and enhanced relationships. Through providing a comprehensive framework to understand staycation, the study establishes a foundation for examining other leisure activities in the evolving tourism landscape.

Funding: This work was supported by Macao University of Tourism. Grant No.: IFTM Research Grant #125.

Freedom from Control (Neal et al., 2007)

• On this trip, I felt free to do the kinds of things I cannot do at home.

• On this trip, I felt free from controls of other people.

• On this trip, I felt free from the pressures of life.

Freedom from Work (Neal et al., 2007)

• On this trip, I felt far away from drudgery of work.

• This trip helped me to rejuvenate and get away from work.

• This trip helped me to get away from strains of work.

Involvement (Neal et al., 2007)

• I became emotionally involved and engaged with people and things in this trip.

• This trip allowed me to get close to my spouse, children, relatives and friends.

• On this trip, I was able to reestablish a dwindling relationship with people for whom I care.

Arousal (Neal et al., 2007)

• On this trip, I did exciting things. I experienced a lot of thrills.

• On this trip, I established friendships with one or more new people.

• On this trip, I got involved with and exciting activity.

Spontaneity (Neal et al., 2007)

• This trip experience has enriched me in ways I never expected.

• This trip allowed me to be spontaneous once in a while.

• On this trip, I enjoyed getting to do things on the “spur-of-the-moment”.

Positive Emotions (Fredrickson et al., 2003)

• The staycation experience made me feel joyful.

• The staycation experience made me feel gratitude.

• The staycation experience made me feel amused.

• The staycation experience made me feel content.

• The staycation experience made me feel proud.

• The staycation experience made me feel love.

• The staycation experience made me feel hope.

• The staycation experience made me feel interested.

Meaning of Life (Dillette et al., 2018)

• My life is more purposeful and meaningful after the trip.

• My life is more valuable and worthwhile after the trip.

• I have more sense of direction for my life after the trip.

Enhanced Relationships (Dillette et al., 2018)

• After the trip, I have more support in my relationships with others.

• After the trip, I have more loving relationships with others.

• After the trip, I am more satisfied with my personal relationships.

Life Satisfaction (Sirgy et al., 2010)

• Overall, my experience with the trip was memorable having enriched my quality of life.

• My satisfaction with life in general was increased shortly after the trip.

• Although I have my ups and downs, in general, I felt good about my life shortly after the trip.

• After the trip, I felt that I lead a meaningful and fulfilling life.

• Overall, I felt happy upon my return from that trip.