An Empirical Study on Consumer Experience and Quality of Green Tourism

Abstract

Green tourism refers to a form of tourism in which those involved in the tourist experience (e.g., travelers, travel agencies, hotels, and destination managers) must respect nature and protect the environment in every aspect of the journey. Such tourism not only provides travelers with an enjoyable experience but also allows them to take action to protect the environment, thereby fostering a sense of environmental awareness. However, green and low-carbon tourism products have only been developed recently. Consequently, in Taiwan, governmental agencies and private companies have tended to allocate limited resources for these products. Therefore, maintaining the quality of green tourism and improving tourist satisfaction under the constraint of limited resources are the keys to developing the green tourism market. By conducting an importance–performance analysis, this study aimed to identify the factors affecting tourist satisfaction with green tourism in Taiwan, the results of which can serve as a reference for businesses to design green and low-carbon tourism products and highlight the areas where resources can best be allocated to improve the quality of green tourism.