Towards developing a model to assess the experience of visitors of the Janadriyah festival, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the experience of visitors with the Janadriyah festival. Design/methodology/approach – An on-site intercept survey was conducted among a random sample of visitors of the festival. The survey was conducted by two field researchers between February 10 and February 25, 2014. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed only to those who agreed to respond to the survey. Out of 200 questionnaires distributed, 28 were incomplete and thus eliminated from the study. As a result, 172 questionnaires were accepted for the purpose of final analysis, representing a response rate of 86 percent. Findings – There is a statistically significant contribution for both the first motivation (I participate in the Janadriyah festival to increase my cultural knowledge) and the fifth one (I participate in the Janadriyah festival to see new and different things and to enjoy a unique atmosphere). There is a statistically significant relationship between the most of services provided and the level of satisfaction. As well as, there is a statistically significant relationship between the perception and the level of satisfaction, also with the word of mouth communication. Finally, the results shown that behavioral intention had a positive influence on word of mouth communication. Research limitations/implications – There were time limits to this study as the research was conducted during the organization of the Janadriyah festival during its 26th session (February-March 2014).The research was also limited by place as it was conducted at the capital of Saudi Arabia, Janadriyah province. Practical implications – The model of the study could be applied in similar studies for different festivals all over the world. Social implications – Increasing the promotional efforts to attract more visitors from different regions in the world. As it is observed that the vast majority of participants in the Janadriyah festival are local residents. In addition, there is a need to organize training programs to all staff participating in the organization of the festival supervised by academics and professionals. Organizing seminars during the festival in order to increase the awareness of local residents with importance of the cultural heritage and how to keep it. And at the end, the program of the festival has to be updated from one session to another in order to attract more attendees. Originality/value – The integrated model of the study represent an added value to the research in the field of tourism festivals.