Promoting tourists’ sustainable transportation use, walking tour and recycling activities for air pollution minimization at overseas urban tourism destinations

Purpose This study aims to examine the factors driving tourists’ engagement in eco-friendly activities to minimize air pollution in urban destinations. It also explores cross-national differences in pollution reduction behaviour between Chinese and Korean tourists to inform tailored sustainable tourism strategies. Design/methodology/approach This study employs a mixed-method approach, integrating user-generated content analysis from TripAdvisor’s Asia forums to highlight experiences and behaviours in polluted destinations with structural equation modelling of survey data to examine the relationships among loyalty, moral norms, attitude and eco-friendly activities. Findings “Air pollution” and “air quality” emerged as the most prominent terms in TripAdvisor’s Asia forums, reflecting the need for pollution reduction. Chinese tourists are more responsive to ascribed responsibility, whereas Korean tourists are more influenced by problem awareness and social norms. Practical implications The findings provide strategic insights for tourism managers to promote tourists’ engagement in eco-friendly activities. Awareness campaigns and community initiatives resonate with Korean tourists, while Chinese tourists require strategies that emphasize personal contributions to pollution reduction. Originality/value This study offers a novel integration of norm activation theory, four-stage loyalty theory and the theory of reasoned action to examine eco-friendly behaviours, effectively bridging environmental psychology and tourism studies. It provides fresh insights into culturally rooted drivers of sustainable behaviour by revealing cross-national differences between Chinese and Korean tourists in air-polluted urban destinations.