La imagen del destino turístico como condicionante del comportamiento del turista ruralefectos en la satisfacción y la fidelidad

Abstract

The rural tourism in our country has had a spectacular development in the last years. It has become a real, more flexible and customize alternative to the traditional “sun and beach” tourism. Furthermore, this tourism has got a seasonally adjust in the tourism sector because it isn´t dependent on meteorological conditions. Bad figures in general tourism contrast with positive and promising figures about rural tourism in Soria province, the object of our empirical study. It shows us the enormous potential that this province has. In this investigation, we have analyzed the destination image. It is the component of the consumer behavior that has more influence on the decision to carry out a trip in a rural tourism accommodation. The aim of this research is to check the influence that the destination image has on the consumer behavior, on the satisfaction an on the loyalty with the tourism destination. The empirical study has been carried out between tourists that were accommodated in a rural tourism accommodation, thanks to 1658 direct surveys. The analysis techniques used in the research have been a Principal Component Analysis to factorize some image components due to the high number of variables; a Multiple Classification Analysis, to carry out a multivariable analysis of dependences, and finally, and Structural Equation Model, based in Partial Least Squares, to get a multidimensional analysis and to show a model of study. The results evidence the significance of the tourist destination image in the new image creation and in the new tourist behavior, as well as in the satisfaction with the destination. At the same time, tourist motivation has a significant weight in the creation of the initial destination image. Finally, satisfaction with the destination has an important influence on the loyalty with the place.