A tourist satisfaction measurement model based on multiple criteria: application to the case of Skopelos Island

Tourist satisfaction refers to the emotional state of tourists after exposure to the opportunity or experience. Experience can be regarded as the individual's intention to create a situation whereby he gains satisfaction. As a result, a tourist's satisfaction is determined by factors or criteria that many times are beyond the capabilities of the tourism industry to affect. The objective of this paper is to propose a model of tourist satisfaction based on five main satisfaction criteria: accommodation, catering, travel/transportation, tourist attractions/recreation and infrastructure. These criteria are aggregated through an additive value function which is inferred from the satisfaction judgements of a set of tourists with the use of the MUSA multi-criteria method and software. The paper also presents a case study application to tourists' satisfaction with the popular visited Greek tourist destination of Skopelos Island. The findings of the study indeed revealed that first priority should be given to the improvement in the travel and transportation of the Skopelos prefecture. On the other hand, accommodation for foreigners and infrastructures for Greek tourists were found to be the region's competitive advantages.