Trust and Use of Information Sources in Travel Planning: Evidence from Croatia

When planning their trips, tourists increasingly navigate a diverse information environment that combines digital platforms, traditional media, institutional sources, and interpersonal recommendations, making both source use and trust important dimensions of the decision-making process. This study examines patterns of trust in and use of travel information sources among residents of Croatia and explores their associations with selected sociodemographic characteristics. A computer-assisted telephone survey was conducted among 601 adult residents of Croatia in January 2025. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, principal component analysis, and Pearson’s chi-square tests and factor analysis. Recommendations from family and friends emerged as both the most trusted and the most frequently used source of travel information. Websites of tourism companies and destinations, along with online platforms, also received relatively high trust ratings, whereas social media and news portals were trusted least. Information-source use varied significantly across age groups, particularly for digital channels, while education showed more selective associations. No statistically significant differences were found by sex. The findings point to distinct patterns of trust in and use of travel information sources, with implications for the design of tourism communication strategies across different sociodemographic groups.