Elements that affect foreign tourists’ satisfaction: a case study in Seoul, Korea

Abstract

AbstractCity tourism is one of the fastest growing industries worldwide. City tourism based on the attractiveness of the city is an important policy objective to secure competitiveness and sustainability of the city. However, as a city attracts more tourists, this uniqueness tends to decrease with the introduction of global corporate franchises as well as the construction of standardised buildings. Policymakers focus more on building hotels and shopping centres than on enhancing the cityscape. Therefore, this article aims to analyse the effect of cityscapes on tourist satisfaction. It encourages policymakers to bear in mind what really matters in fostering tourist satisfaction. During this research, about 250 foreign tourists visiting Seoul were given questionnaires to complete. Ordered logistic regression was used to analyse the data collected. The results demonstrated that among several elements that affected tourist satisfaction, such as shopping, security, and public transportation services, the cityscape had the greatest influence. This fact shows that urban competitiveness and sustainable city tourism are more important than the construction of new buildings or infrastructure in the short term. In the future, policymakers should seek to strengthen the city’s competitiveness from a longer-term perspective for its sustainable economic revitalisation.