Satisfaction and loyalty of festival visitors

Abstract

Public authorities and the private tourism sector at the destinations have long recognized the benefits of diversifying the portfolio of attractions with special events and festivals. Therefore the special events and festivals are of paramount in terms of enhancing the experience at tourist destinations. The scope of this study is to identify the details of event performance such as the programs of a festival and indoor/outdoor facilities that influence the satisfaction and loyalty of festival visitors. These aspects need to be taken into consideration prior to planning and programming of the events in order to positively influence the visitors' satisfaction and loyalty. In this study the results of the survey carried out during the International Camel Wrestling Festival in Ephesus Turkey are analyzed by multivariate data analysis to determine how visitors' satisfaction and loyalty are associated with the event performance. The study concludes that the festival area has a direct positive effect on visitor satisfaction and loyalty whereas other independent variables such as souvenirs food convenience and staff attributes of festival performance have indirect positive effects. © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.