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But are tourists satisfied? Importance-performance analysis of the whale shark tourism industry on Isla Holbox, Mexico

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  • Ziegler, Jackie
  • Dearden, Philip
  • Rollins, Rick

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to understand the motivations and satisfactions of whale shark tour participants on Isla Holbox, Mexico in order to assess the success of this industry in meeting customer expectations. Whale shark tour participants were provided with a list of environmental and setting features and asked to rate the importance of, and satisfaction with, each feature. Importance-performance (IP) analysis was used to compare these scores and identify areas of management concern. The IP analysis identified key issues with false advertising, lack of educational information, perceived crowding, and tour cost. These factors are representative of larger issues related to the uncontrolled growth of the whale shark tourism industry on Holbox. Management should focus on limiting the growth of the industry, ensuring the equitable distribution of economic benefits within the industry, and developing and implementing effective guide training and interpretation programs.

Suggested Citation

  • Ziegler, Jackie & Dearden, Philip & Rollins, Rick, 2012. "But are tourists satisfied? Importance-performance analysis of the whale shark tourism industry on Isla Holbox, Mexico," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 33(3), pages 692-701.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:touman:v:33:y:2012:i:3:p:692-701
    DOI: 10.1016/j.tourman.2011.08.004
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    Cited by:

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    2. Jesús A. Aguilar-Maldonado & Eduardo Santamaría-Del-Ángel & Adriana González-Silvera & Omar D. Cervantes-Rosas & María-Teresa Sebastiá-Frasquet, 2018. "Mapping Satellite Inherent Optical Properties Index in Coastal Waters of the Yucatán Peninsula (Mexico)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(6), pages 1-20, June.
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    6. Pan, Frank C., 2015. "Practical application of importance-performance analysis in determining critical job satisfaction factors of a tourist hotel," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 84-91.
    7. Jih-Kuang Chen, 2021. "A New Approach for Diagonal Line Model of Importance-Performance Analysis: A Case Study of Tourist Satisfaction in China," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(1), pages 21582440219, January.
    8. Roni Armis & Hidehiko Kanegae, 2021. "Regional competitiveness of a post‐mining city in tourism: Ombilin coal mining heritage of Sawahlunto, Indonesia," Regional Science Policy & Practice, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 13(6), pages 1888-1910, December.
    9. Filby, Nicole E. & Stockin, Karen A. & Scarpaci, Carol, 2015. "Social science as a vehicle to improve dolphin-swim tour operation compliance?," Marine Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 40-47.
    10. Karim Charaf & Ahmed Fath-Allah Rahmouni, 2014. "Using Importance Performance Analysis to Evaluate the Satisfaction of Activity-Based Costing Adopters," Journal of Accounting and Management Information Systems, Faculty of Accounting and Management Information Systems, The Bucharest University of Economic Studies, vol. 13(4), pages 665-685, December.
    11. Hailong Wu & Takamitsu Jimura, 2019. "Exploring an Importance–Performance Analysis approach to evaluate destination image," Local Economy, London South Bank University, vol. 34(7), pages 699-717, November.
    12. Nam, Seungju & Song, Woon-Kyung & Yoon, Heekweon, 2023. "An maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) safety oversight system analysis: A case in Korea," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
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    14. Jarvis, Diane & Stoeckl, Natalie & Liu, Hong-Bo, 2016. "The impact of economic, social and environmental factors on trip satisfaction and the likelihood of visitors returning," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 1-18.
    15. Chen, Pin-Zheng & Liu, Wan-Yu, 2019. "Assessing management performance of the national forest park using impact range-performance analysis and impact-asymmetry analysis," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 121-138.
    16. Gordon Chih-Ming Ku & I-Wei Shang, 2020. "Using the Integrated Kano–RIPA Model to Explore Teaching Quality of Physical Education Programs in Taiwan," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(11), pages 1-13, June.
    17. Esmailpour, Javad & Aghabayk, Kayvan & Abrari Vajari, Mohammad & De Gruyter, Chris, 2020. "Importance – Performance Analysis (IPA) of bus service attributes: A case study in a developing country," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 129-150.
    18. Michele Preziosi & Alessia Acampora & Maria Claudia Lucchetti & Roberto Merli, 2022. "Delighting Hotel Guests with Sustainability: Revamping Importance-Performance Analysis in the Light of the Three-Factor Theory of Customer Satisfaction," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(6), pages 1-20, March.
    19. Sever, Ivan, 2015. "Importance-performance analysis: A valid management tool?," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 43-53.
    20. Bee-Lia Chua & Shahrim Karim & Sanghyeop Lee & Heesup Han, 2020. "Customer Restaurant Choice: An Empirical Analysis of Restaurant Types and Eating-Out Occasions," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(17), pages 1-23, August.
    21. Jinyang Deng & Chad D. Pierskalla, 2018. "Linking Importance–Performance Analysis, Satisfaction, and Loyalty: A Study of Savannah, GA," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(3), pages 1-17, March.
    22. Sheng, Xiaojing & Simpson, Penny M. & Siguaw, Judy A., 2014. "U. S. winter migrants' park community attributes: An importance–performance analysis," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 55-67.
    23. Bentz, Julia & Lopes, Fernando & Calado, Helena & Dearden, Philip, 2016. "Enhancing satisfaction and sustainable management: Whale watching in the Azores," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 465-476.
    24. Kuan-Mien Hsieh & Frank Pan, 2019. "Importance and performance analysis on the investor’s choice of an offshore mutual fund and a bank channel in Taiwan," International Journal of Finance & Banking Studies, Center for the Strategic Studies in Business and Finance, vol. 8(3), pages 01-12, July.
    25. Boley, B. Bynum & McGehee, Nancy Gard & Tom Hammett, A.L., 2017. "Importance-performance analysis (IPA) of sustainable tourism initiatives: The resident perspective," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 66-77.

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