African Journal of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure, Volume 9(1) - (2020) ISSN: 2223-814X

Copyright: © 2020 AJHTL /Author/s- Open Access- Online @ http//: www.ajhtl.com

An investigation of destination attributes and service

quality of tourism in Amhara Region, Ethiopia
Sisay Haile*
College of Social Sciences and Humanities
Department of Psychology
University of Gondar, Ethiopia
Email: [email protected]

Derb Abiew
College of Social Sciences and Humanities
Department of English Language and Literature
University of Gondar, Ethiopia
Email: [email protected]

Tewodros Abuhay
College of Social Sciences and Humanities
Department of Civics and Ethical Studies,
University of Gondar, Ethiopia
Email: [email protected]
Corresponding author*

Abstract

The general objective of this study was to examine tourist evaluation of the destination attributes and how
these associate with tourists’ satisfaction in Amhara Region, Ethiopia. This study employed a cross-
sectional research design utilizing a quantitative research method to pursue the research objectives. The
target population consisted of 152 international tourists who visited the four tourist destinations in Amhara
Region namely: Gondar, Debark, Bahir Dar, and Lalibela. A self-administered questionnaire was used to
measure tourists’ perceptions of the eight destination attributes. Descriptive analysis revealed that the
potential tourists visiting the major tourist destinations in Amhara Region are females, aged between 50-
59, single, and highly educated. In terms of travel behavior characteristics, the majority of the
respondents arrived to the major tourist destinations by air, got information from word-of-mouth, came
primarily for culture experience followed by leisure. Descriptive analysis also revealed that tourists rated
the eight destination attributes at a high level, and they were generally satisfied with the major tourist
attraction areas of Amhara Region. The regression analysis showed that destination attractiveness,
hospitality, and cost had positive relationship with tourist satisfaction, while infrastructural, accessibility,
and destination cleanliness had negative relationship with tourist satisfaction. Accommodation and safety
and security did not make a significant contribution to the prediction of tourists’ satisfaction. Based on the
results of this, the research makes recommendations for the various parties like culture and tourism
offices, service providers, NGO’s, local administers, should involved for increasing the satisfaction of
foreign tourists.

Keywords: Tourist satisfaction, destination attributes, tourists’ demographic and travel behavior
characteristics, Amhara region.

Introduction

Realizing the role of tourism as an important driver of economic growth to national GDP (Huh,
Uysal, & McCleary, 2006; WTTC, 2013), governments worldwide have continuously intensified
their efforts to compete for the tourism market. In this regard, tourist satisfaction is one of the

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 African Journal of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure, Volume 9(1) - (2020) ISSN: 2223-814X
Copyright: © 2020 AJHTL /Author/s- Open Access- Online @ http//: www.ajhtl.com

most often studied topics in the tourism literature, since it is considered as key to the success of
the tourism industry (Kotler, Bowen & Makens, 2010). The main purpose for measuring and
explaining tourists satisfaction is to understand how well suppliers at a particular destination
recognize and respond to the needs of its visitors and to identify which elements of the
destinations offer need improvement (Kim & Brown, 2012; Kotler et al., 2010).

In the tourist literature tourists’ satisfaction is defined as the emotional state emerging as a
result of experiencing a tourism product and tourism activities (Rajaratnam & Nair, 2015). There
are many studies which have been carried out by different researchers in different contexts to
identify the factors that affect the tourists’ satisfaction (Zabkar et al., 2010).The literature
indicates that a more appropriate strategy for understanding tourists’ satisfaction would be to
examine tourists' perceptions of the destination attributes (Rajaratnam & Nair, 2015; Zabkar et
al., 2010).

In the existing literature, many approaches have been suggested to measure consumer
perceptions of the attractiveness of the tourism product (Middleton, 2001). Though there exists
a diversity of definitions of tourism destinations, the majority of studies acknowledge that
tourism destination is a complex activity of goods, services/ facilities and production units which
offers a tourism experience to individuals or groups of people (Murphy et al., 2000; Rajaratnam
& Nair, 2015).

On the basis of these notions several studies examined the critical role of destination attributes
in determining tourists' satisfaction (Nicolaides, 2008, 2012, 2016; Ramphal & Nicolaides, 2014)
and each of these found inter alia, that service quality excellence and the ambience of a place
are the key to happy tourist experiences. Studies show that tourism-related infrastructure, such
as transportation facilities and accessibility (Eraqi, 2006; Kozak, 2002; Poon & Low, 2005;
Rajesh, 2013), accommodation facilities (Kozak, 2002; Poon & Low, 2005), staff service
quality(Eraqi, 2006; Kasper et al., 2006), quality of food and beverage (Poon &Low, 2005),
hospitality and customer care (Kozak, 2002), security and safety (Chiang, 2000; Poon & Low,
2005; Rajesh, 2013), destination cleanliness (Keyser, 2004; Kozak, 2002),and destination
attractiveness (Middleton 2001; Murphy et al.,2000) are important factors in determining tourists'
satisfaction.
In the review of the tourism literature, several studies also indicated the critical role of tourists’
demographic and travel behavior characteristics in order to help tourism marketers better
understand their customers (Huh et al., 2006). Scholars argue that the characteristics of
tourists, such as their income, age, and motivations are important factors when the researcher
analyzes tourists’ satisfaction (Kotler et al., 2010; Moutinho, 2000).

Statement of the Problem

Ethiopia is rich in cultural and natural tourism resources. Amhara region, the focus of the
present study, possesses a plethora of tourist attractions. However, this potential has not been
exploited to any great extent (Robinson & Jonker, 2016). Indeed, the tourism industry in
Ethiopia could be described as one that is still in its infancy (Kidane-Mariam, 2015). The few
available studies indicated that the industry is plagued with numerous challenges, including poor
marketing and promotion, lack of well-developed tourist related infrastructure and services, and
low level of human capacity both at managerial and operational levels (Robinson & Jonker,
2016).

Complicating the problem, little research has investigated about the current destination
attributes and tourist’ satisfaction in Ethiopia in general and Amhara region in particular. The

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Copyright: © 2020 AJHTL /Author/s- Open Access- Online @ http//: www.ajhtl.com

little available research failed to include several measures of destination attributes. Thus, the
present research is an effort to remedy the paucity of research on tourists’ perceptions of the
destination attributes and the levels of their satisfaction and the effects these have on
satisfaction in Amhara Regional State. Therefore, the general objective of the present study was
to investigate tourist evaluation of the destination attributes and how these associate with the
tourists’ satisfaction. The specific objectives of this study are: (1) to identify the potential profile
of the tourists in terms of demographic and travel behavior characteristics, (2) to assess tourists’
evaluation of the destination attributes, (3) to assess the level of tourists’ satisfaction, and (4) to
determine the relationship between destination attributes and tourists’ satisfaction.

Research Methods

This study employed a cross-sectional research design utilizing a quantitative research method
to pursue the four research objectives. The study was conducted among the major tourist
destinations of the Amhara Region. The study area covered four tourist attraction sites, namely:
Gondar, Debark, BahirDar, and Lalibela where the Castle of Fasiledes in Gondar, the Simien
Mountains National Park, the island monasteries of Lake Tana, and the monolithic rock-hewn
church of Lalibela are found, respectively. The population for this study was composed of
international tourists who visited the four tourist destinations in Amhara Region. As the exact
number of visitors was not known beforehand, a convenience sample was chosen as a non-
probability sampling technique.

A self-administered questionnaire was developed to measure tourists’ perceptions of destination

attributes and satisfaction. The questionnaire used in this study consisted of four sections. The
first part consisted of the demographic profile of the respondents which was designed to obtain
information on sex, age, marital status, and educational status. Section two included travel
behavior characteristics of tourists, such as means of arrival at tourist destination, source of
information, and purpose of visit.

Section three contained the major variables of the study in order to measure the destination
attributes. For the present study the eight destination attributes included were accommodation
(8 items), accessibility (9 items), attractiveness (18 items), hospitality (13 items), safety and
security (8 items), infrastructure (4 items), prices of products/service (12 items), and destination
cleanliness (2 items). The measures were adapted from prior researches (Rajaratnam & Nair,
2015; Zabkar et al., 2010).

Respondents were asked to rate each of the destinations attributes variable on a five-point
Likert scale ranging from 1 (very poor) to 5 (very good), with a high mean score indicating
greater levels of the attribute performance on that particular variable. The fourth section
included measures related to tourists’ satisfaction. In this study, the measurement of satisfaction
was adapted from a questionnaire developed by Robinot and Giannelloni (2010) and based on
previous research (Kotler et al., 2010; Rajaratnam & Nair, 2015; Zabkar et al., 2010). Sample
items were: ‘My choice to visit tourism destinations in Amhara region was a wise one’.
Respondents were requested to rate on the levels of satisfactions on 23 items using a 5-point
Likert-type scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree).

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Copyright: © 2020 AJHTL /Author/s- Open Access- Online @ http//: www.ajhtl.com

Results

Demographic and Travel Behavior Characteristics of the Respondents

The first objective of the study was to investigate the profile of the tourists in terms of
demographic characteristics and their travel behavior characteristics who visited the major
tourist destinations of Amhara Region. The summary of the demographic characteristics and
travel behavior characteristics of the respondents are shown in Table 1.

Table 1. Demographic and travel behavior characteristics of Respondents (N=152)

__________________________________________
Variables F %
___________________________________________
Sex
Male 53 34.9
Female 99 65.1
Age
Under 20 11 7.2
20-29 34 22.4
30-39 33 21.7
40-49 9 5.9
50-59 44 28.9
Above 59 21 13.8
Marital status
Single 69 45.4
Married 83 54.6
Education level
High school 31 20.4
College diploma 10 6.6
1st degree 22 14.5
2nd degree 68 44.7
PhD 21 13.8
Mode of Transport
4 wheel 19 12.5
Bus 11 7.2
Air 122 80.3
Sources of Information
Family friends 68 44.74
Media/ website 37 24.34
Magazine/news paper 18 11.84
Travel guide book 29 19.01
Purpose of visit
Relax/ entertainment 31 20.4
Business 13 8.6
Education 28 18.4
Culture 80 52.6
____________________________________________
Source: (Own survey data, 2017)

Demographic Characteristics of Respondents

In total, 170 questionnaires were distributed out of which 152 questionnaires were returned or
usable giving a response rate of 89.41%. The gender distribution of the respondents showed
that the majority of respondents (65.1%) were female and 34.9percent were male. It is evident
that 7.2 percent of the respondents were under 20, 22.4 percent were between the age bracket
20-29 years, 21.7 percent were between the ages 30-39 year, 5.9 percent felt between the age
bracket 40-49 year, 28.9 percent between the ages 50-59 year, and 13.8 percent were over
sixty years old. With regard to respondents' marital status most of the respondents 54.6 percent
were married and 45.4 percent of the respondents were single. In terms of level of education,

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Copyright: © 2020 AJHTL /Author/s- Open Access- Online @ http//: www.ajhtl.com

the majority of respondents (44.7%) had 2nd degree; 20.4 percent completed high school, and
13.8 percent had a PhD degree, demonstrating that the majority of the samples are highly
educated.

Travel Behavior Characteristics of Respondents

The travel behaviors of the respondents analyzed in this study were means of arrival at tourist
destination, sources of information, and purpose of visit. With regard to the means of arrival the
largest group of respondents (80.3%) arrived by air. 12.5 5 percent arrived by 4 wheel and the
smallest group of respondents (7.2 %) arrived by bus. As far as tourists’ sources of information
is concerned, the largest groups of respondents (44.74%) heard from friends, 24.34 percent
from media/ website, 11.84 percent from magazine/newspaper, and 19.01 percent from travel
guide book. The majority of respondents (52.6%) came for culture experience, 20.4 percent for
relaxation, 18.4 percent for educational purpose, and 8.6 percent for business.

Descriptive statistics on Tourists’ evaluation of destination attributes

The second objective of the current study was to assess tourists’ evaluation of destination
attributes in Amhara Region. Responses to the eight destination attributes items were summed
to yield a summative score for each scale. The results of descriptive statistics (means and
standard deviations) are summarized in Table 2.

Table 2. Descriptive statistics on Destination Attributes and satisfaction (N=152)

Variables Number of Min. Max. M SD
items
Satisfaction 23 63.00 24.00 102 17.12
Accommodation 8 21.00 40.00 31.12 5.40
Accessibility 9 25.00 45.00 34.356 6.17
Attractiveness 18 32.00 90.00 9.51 15.98
Hospitality 13 24.00 65.00 47.84 11.71
Safety and security 8 11.00 40.00 25.53 7.19
Infrastructural 4 3.00 20.00 11.84 4.57
Prices of products/service 12 30.00 60.00 46.25 8.97
Destination cleanliness 2 3.00 10.00 5.44 1.46

Source: (Own survey data, 2017)

As shown in Table 2, on a scale from one to five the mean score for destination accommodation
was 31.12(SD= 5.40), accessibility 34.35 (SD=6.17), attractiveness 69.51 (SD=15.98),
hospitality 47.84 (SD=11.71), safety and security 25.53 (SD=7.19), infrastructural quality 11.84
(SD=4.57), prices of products/service 46.25 (SD=8.97), and destination cleanliness5.44 (SD=
1.46).

Descriptive statistics on Tourists overall Satisfaction

The third objective of the study was to investigate the level of tourist satisfaction (dependent
variable) at tourist attraction sites in Amhara Region. As shown in Table 2, mean score for
satisfaction was 102 (SD=17.12), ranging from a low of 63.00 to a high level of 124.00. The
result indicates high satisfaction of the tourist at destination sites.

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Copyright: © 2020 AJHTL /Author/s- Open Access- Online @ http//: www.ajhtl.com

Predictors of Tourists’ Satisfactions

The fourth objective of the study was to determine the relationships between the destination
attributes and overall tourist satisfaction. Multiple regression analysis was conducted using
overall tourist satisfaction as the dependent variables and the eight destinations attributes as
independent variables. Table 3 shows the results of the regression analysis.

Table 3. Regression analyses of destination attributes as predictors of tourist satisfaction (N=152)

Variables B SEB ß Sig.

Accommodation -.45 .35 -.14 .197

Accessibility -.51 .22 -.18** .015
Attractiveness .59 .11 .55*** .001
Hospitality .76 .13 .52*** .001
Safety and security .26 .17 .11 .127
Infrastructural -1.40 .32 -.36 .001
Prices of products/service .93 .11 .49** .001
Destination cleanliness -1.50 .58 -.13** .011

2 2
Note. F = (8, 143) = 77.90, R = .90, R = .813, Adjusted R = .803, ***p<.001, **p<.01.

Source: (Own survey data, 2017)

The results of the regression analysis indicated that there was a significant relationship between
destination attributes and tourist satisfaction = (8, 143) = 77.90, p< .001. The regression model,
presented in Table 3 explained 80.3 percent of the variance in overall tourist satisfaction. The
results of the regression analysis indicated that attractiveness (β = .55, p = .010), hospitality (β =
.52, p =.000), prices of products/service (β = .49, p =.001), infrastructural (β = -.36, p =.000),
accessibility (β = -.18, p =.015), and destination cleanliness (β= -.13, p = .011) are significant
factors contributing to the prediction of the overall satisfaction of tourists. The regression results
indicated that accommodation (β= -.14, p = .19) and safety and security (β= .109, p = .13) had
no significant association with tourists’ satisfaction.

Discussions

The first objective of the present study was to investigate the demographic and travel
characteristics of tourists. Findings from this study showed that the majority of tourists visiting
tourist destinations in Amhara Region were females, were between 50 to 59 years, were
married, and hold 2nd degree. In terms of travel behavior characteristics, the majority of the
respondents arrived by air, hear about tourist attraction sites from friends, and came for cultural
experiences.

The demographic data collected in the present study were therefore important in order to
develop a profile of the tourists and can serve as bases for segmenting customer group since
consumer wants, preferences, and usage rates are often associated with demographic variables
(Huh et al., 2006). In fact, the literature suggests that demographic analysis can be used to
develop customer profiles (Kotler et al., 2010; Moutinho, 2000).

In terms of travel behavior characteristics, the majority of the respondents arrived by air and the
smallest group of respondents arrived by bus. This implies that tourists may have limited
possibility to observe the rich natural factors such as natural beauty, waterfalls, and a wide
range of wildlife and vegetation along their way to different attraction sites. As far as tourists’
sources of information about the major tourist destinations in Amhara Region is concerned, the

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Copyright: © 2020 AJHTL /Author/s- Open Access- Online @ http//: www.ajhtl.com

result revealed that the largest groups of respondents heard about tourist attraction sites from
friends, indicating the importance of word of mouth recommendation. Tourism research
indicated that word-of-mouth recommendations from family and friends are the most important
influential source contributing to destination image formation (Huh et al., 2006). This study also
investigated what motivated tourists in selecting the major tourist destinations in Amhara
Region.

Findings from this study show that the majority of respondents came for cultural experiences.
This is not surprising given that the Amhara Region has a rich religious and cultural history
endowed with cultural heritage with ancient historic centers, including the monolithic rock-hewn
church of Lalibela; the Castle of Fasilades in Gondar; the island monasteries of Lake Tana
making them more attractive for visitors (Robinson & Jonker, 2016). The results supported the
previous research which shows that historical attractions give tourists an opportunity to
experience the uniqueness of that destination (Keyser, 2009). As a second reason behind
tourists’ choice of the destinations includes relaxation. In fact, the Amhara Region has a rich
'pull' of numerous natural wonders, such as the Simien Mountains National Park and Lake Tana
that are attractive for visitors and could fulfill their relaxation motive.

The second objective of the current study was to determine tourist evaluation of the destination
attributes in Amhara Region. It appears that the mean value for all destinations attributes were
above average, suggesting that tourists evaluated the good performance of the major tourist
destinations attributes in Amhara Region in terms of tourism services and nature of tourism
products / offered by the destinations. Therefore, the findings from this study suggest that the
high level ratings of destination attributes performance has significant influence over tourists'
choice of destination, consumption of tourism products and services, and intention to return
(Neal & Gursoy, 2008; Middleton, 2001; Rajaratnam & Nair, 2015; Ritchie et al., 2001). In the
literature, the importance of tourist perception or evaluation on the standard of tourism products
at the destination are overemphasized (Moutinho, 2000). In fact, the current scholarship on
destination attractiveness demonstrates that the features of the destination are the most
important elements which tourists enjoy (Middleton, 2001).

The third objective of the current study was to determine tourist overall satisfaction at tourist
attraction sites in Amhara Region. It appears that the mean value for satisfaction was above
average, suggesting that respondents tend to have positive attitudes toward destination
attributes. The overall result implies that this level of satisfaction is important to the success of
the tourism business in general and for destination marketing because it can influence tourists’
behaviors such as to expand the length of stay and destination loyalty (Huh et al., 2006).

The fourth objective of this study was to determine the relationships between the destination
attributes and overall tourist satisfaction. The regression results indicated that six of the eight
destination factors were found to be significant. More specifically, results highlight that the
quality of the attractions has a positive influence on tourists’ satisfaction. This suggests that
tourists who reported high levels of destination attractiveness were more likely to report a more
positive satisfaction. In this regard, the Amhara Region is endowed with beautiful natural
scenarios-mountains, lakes, rivers, and natural vegetation making them more attractive for
visitors to Amhara Region (Ministry of Culture and Tourism, 2015). The findings that attractions
have a positive relationship with satisfaction is in close alignment with other studies, such as
Middleton (2001) and Murphy et al. (2000), whose results indicated that attractions as the major
positive determinants for tourists’ higher satisfaction levels.

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Copyright: © 2020 AJHTL /Author/s- Open Access- Online @ http//: www.ajhtl.com

In this study, we also identified a positive relationship between hospitality and tourists’
satisfaction. This implies that tourists are satisfied about the behavior of the local residents,
vendors, and service staff and quality services offered by the hoteliers. The findings have
supported the literature studies, which contend that hospitality, as a service attribute, would
contribute to an increased overall satisfaction (Kozak, 2002). In addition, in agreement with
other study findings, the present study found a positive relationship between price and tourist
satisfaction. These findings highlight visitors appear to have received value for the money they
spent for accommodation, food and transports. The findings were consistent with those of Poon
and Low (2005), Eraqi (2006), Kozak (2002), and Middleton (2001) who explained that price as
one consistent satisfaction attribute.

However, the results of the regression analysis indicated that there were negative relationship
between destination infrastructural, accessibility, and destination cleanliness and tourist
satisfaction. The findings have supported the literature studies, which contend that inadequate
transportation, poor transportation facilities, and poor accessibility (Eraqi, 2006; Kozak, 2002;
Poon &Low, 2005; Rajesh, 2013) were negatively related to tourist satisfaction. The regression
results also indicated that destination cleanliness had negative relationship with tourist
satisfaction. The results from this study are in keeping with other studies that reported hygiene
and sanitation and cleanliness (Keyser, 2004; Kasper et al., 2006; Kozak, 2002; Presbury et al.,
2005) relate with tourists’ satisfaction.

The regression results indicated that accommodation and safety and security did not make a
significant contribution to the prediction of tourist satisfaction. The lack of significant
associations between safety and security and tourist satisfaction is also somewhat unexpected
because the literature indicates that accommodation service quality especially at hotels (Kozak,
2002; Poon & Low, 2005; Singh, 2006) and safety and security (Chiang, 2000) are important
contributor to visitor satisfaction at host regions (Presbury et al., 2005; Singh, 2006).

Conclusions

This study has yielded several findings of interest to the tourism industry literature. The study’s
results are considered to be valuable to destination management in Amhara Region. Based on
the results of the analysis of the study the following conclusions are drawn:

1. From the result of the analysis, it might be concluded

that the major international tourists visiting tourist destinations in Amhara Region are
females, with age range between 50-59, and highly educated. In terms of travel
characteristics, the majority of the respondents arrived to the major tourist destinations
by air, got information about the destinations from word-of-mouth, came for culture
experience and leisure. The findings suggest that the effort of tourist industry in
advertising other potential tourist attributes through websites was so weak and limited.
2. Tourists rated the eight destination attributes of Amhara Region at high level, implying
the good performance of the destinations attributes of the tourist destinations sites.
3. From the findings it can be concluded that tourists were generally satisfied with tourism
product and services available at the major tourist attraction areas of Amhara Region.
4. Destination attractiveness, hospitality, and cost had positive relationship with tourist
satisfaction, while infrastructural, accessibility, and destination cleanliness had negative
relationship with tourist satisfaction. Accommodation and security and safety had no
significant association with tourists’ satisfaction.

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Recommendations

This study provides information that can be useful for tourism industry to improve the quality of
destination attributes and tourist satisfaction. Based on the results of this, the research makes
the following recommendations.
In order to truly satisfy tourists visiting the major tourist destinations in Amhara Region, tourism
marketing professionals and service providers need to be aware of the potential tourists visiting
the tourist destinations in Amhara Region. The result of the present study highlights that tourism
marketing professionals and service providers should adapt their products and services to
specific potential tourists, such as to females, whose age is between 50 and 59 years, single,
and highly educated. Because this study revealed that the majority of respondents came for
cultural experiences, tourism policy makers and practitioners should continue maintaining to
promote the cultural attributes so as to fulfill their expectation and satisfaction. In addition, given
the region has a plethora of tourism resources, the Regional state authorities as well as the
tourism organization should give special attention to promoting other tourism products and
destination attributes through effective promotional channels and marketing strategies.

Given that tourists rated the eight destinations attributes and their satisfaction at high level, all
tourism-related stakeholders should continue maintaining their efforts toward the tourist
satisfaction endeavors. Furthermore, in order for the region to maintain its competitive edge and
continue to attract tourists, tourism policy makers and practitioners should evaluate the level of
their current destination attributes performance on a regular basis. The Federal Government,
Regional state, the local authorities, and tourism organization should identify areas of
dissatisfaction where Amhara Region as a destination has proven to be weak. Results highlight
that special attention should be given to improving the quality of destination infrastructure,
accessibility, and cleanliness factors in order to enhance tourists' satisfaction at the major tourist
attraction areas of Amhara Region.

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