Motivations as predictors of religious tourism: the Muslim pilgrimage to the city of Mecca

Author:

Hassan Tahani,Carvache-Franco Mauricio,Carvache-Franco WilmerORCID,Carvache-Franco Orly

Abstract

PurposeReligious tourism is one of the oldest and fastest-growing segments. This study analyzes religious tourism through the pilgrimage of Muslims to the holy city of Mecca and has the following objectives: (1) establish the motivational dimensions of religious tourism; (2) identify the motivational dimensions that predict the satisfaction of religious tourism and (3) determine the motivational dimensions that predict return, recommend and say positive things about religious tourism applied to the pilgrimage to a sacred city.Design/methodology/approachThe sample consisted of Muslim pilgrims who had visited Mecca. The sample was collected in Bahrain, a country located on the Persian Gulf, where most of its population is Muslim. A total of 380 valid questionnaires were obtained online. For the data analysis, factorial analysis and the multiple regression method enter were performed.FindingsThe results show that religious motivations are more important when visiting a sacred city than secular ones. Three motivational dimensions were found: religious, social and cultural and shopping. The three dimensions found have a significant relationship with satisfaction and loyalty. Likewise, it was found that the religious motivational dimension is the factor that most predicts satisfaction and loyalty in the behavior of religious visits to a sacred city.Research limitations/implicationsThe main limitation of the present study was the temporality in which the sample was taken because the demand may vary at another time of the year and therefore vary its results.Practical implicationsThe authors of the study recommend that holy cities increase the religious motivations of these travelers by periodically researching their needs and organizing services to suit their desired spiritual experience. Also, to improve the social and cultural part, travel agencies and tourist companies to Mecca should promote social and cultural motivation among travelers in an appropriate way by providing service packages that involve visits to cultural and social sites such as museums and cultural centers.Social implicationsThis research will serve as a management guide for public institutions and private companies to develop more efficient planning in religious destinations and sacred cities.Originality/valueThis study is the first to analyze the construct of motivations in the pilgrimage to the city of Mecca, to then establish what the main motivations are that predict satisfaction and loyalty in a religious city. Thus, its results provide important information for tourist destination managers and tourism service providers.

Publisher

Emerald

Subject

Urban Studies,General Business, Management and Accounting,Geography, Planning and Development,Conservation

Reference45 articles.

1. Pilgrimage as tourism experience: the case of the Ignatian Way;International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage,2016

2. Muslim perspectives on spiritual and religious travel beyond Hajj: toward understanding motivations for Umrah travel in Oman;Tourism Management Perspectives,2017

3. A closer look at Santiago de Compostela’s pilgrims through the lens of motivations;Tourism Management,2018

4. Motivation for tourists' participation in religious tourism in Eastern Cape: a case study of Buffalo City, South Africa;African Journal of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure,2017

5. The mediating role of tourist satisfaction: a study of Muslim tourists in Malaysia;Journal of Travel and Tourism Marketing,2012

同舟云学术

1.学者识别学者识别

2.学术分析学术分析

3.人才评估人才评估

"同舟云学术"是以全球学者为主线,采集、加工和组织学术论文而形成的新型学术文献查询和分析系统,可以对全球学者进行文献检索和人才价值评估。用户可以通过关注某些学科领域的顶尖人物而持续追踪该领域的学科进展和研究前沿。经过近期的数据扩容,当前同舟云学术共收录了国内外主流学术期刊6万余种,收集的期刊论文及会议论文总量共计约1.5亿篇,并以每天添加12000余篇中外论文的速度递增。我们也可以为用户提供个性化、定制化的学者数据。欢迎来电咨询!咨询电话:010-8811{复制后删除}0370

www.globalauthorid.com

TOP

Copyright © 2019-2024 北京同舟云网络信息技术有限公司
京公网安备11010802033243号  京ICP备18003416号-3