The efect of socio-demographic variables and travel characteristics on motivation of Muslim family tourists in Malaysia Yuhanis Abdul Aziz and Siti Rahayu Hussin Department of Management and Marketing, Faculty of Economics and Management, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Malaysia Hossein Nezakati Malaysia University of Science and Technology, Selangor, Malaysia, and Raja Nerina Raja Yusof and Haslinda Hashim Department of Management and Marketing, Faculty of Economics and Management, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Malaysia Abstract Purpose – This paper aims to investigate the socio-demographic variables that affect the motivation of Muslim tourists in Malaysia, and to examine the travel characteristics factors that affect the motivation in decision making of Muslim tourists travelling to Malaysia. Design/methodology/approach – The study surveys questionnaires for data collection. Convenience sampling technique was used on the selected sample. The study was conducted in Malaysia, where the target respondents included Muslim family tourists with ages ranging from 18 to 64 years. Findings – The fndings show that motivation differs signifcantly among different levels of the socio- demographic characteristics except for gender and income. The result also reported that a majority of tourists’ travel behaviour was signifcantly different unless when it comes to seeking accommodation. Results also revealed a tendency for long holiday stays among Muslim tourists in Malaysia. Research limitations/implications – In this study, the examination of motivation on the Muslim family tourists has provided signifcant infuence in managing the family tourist experience. On the other hand, most previous studies have shown that motivation is positively guided by general “push and pull” factors. However, this research demonstrates that components such family fnancial income and age of respondents has an effect on Muslim family tourists’ motivation, thus justifying the experience effect. Practical implications – It is crucial for the service provider and destination management organizations to differentiate their products and services so that the packages and experience will be more meaningful. Social implications – Destination packages should be appropriately designed and positioned in the target markets to meet the needs and wants of different Muslim family groups. Communication should emphasize not only the most distinctive characteristics but also the most suitable holiday packages that the family tourist can afford to pay. This would assist the family in the decision-making process and choice processes and facilitate the family’s expectation. The authors would like to acknowledge the funding provided by Universiti Putra Malaysia and the assistance of Shayesteh Moghadas in assisting in the preparation of this article. JIMA 9,2 222 Received 4 March 2016 Revised 5 June 2016 26 February 2017 6 June 2017 Accepted 13 July 2017 Journal of Islamic Marketing Vol. 9 No. 2, 2018 pp. 222-239 © Emerald Publishing Limited 1759-0833 DOI 10.1108/JIMA-03-2016-0016 The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at: www.emeraldinsight.com/1759-0833.htm