LAUSR

Abstract The goal of this paper is to study the determinants of length of stay of international tourists in Spain using a survival analysis approach. We incorporate unobserved heterogeneity using frailty models to account for misspecification or omitted covariates. The explanatory variables included in the econometric model of tourist demand in terms of length of stay were selected according to the neoclassical theory of consumer choice and the information available in the Tourist Expenditure Survey undertaken by the Spanish Institute for Tourism Studies. We analyze to what extent the tourists' socio-demographic profiles and the trip characteristics determine length of stay. We find that the most important factors are country of origin, destination, and time and budgetary constraints.