Interpretive satisfaction of Chinese visitors at the Southern Sichuan Bamboo Sea: Importance-Performance Analysis approach

Abstract

Assessing visitor satisfaction with interpretive services is important for understanding visitors' nature tourism experiences. This study explored Chinese visitors' satisfaction with a bamboo forestry attraction using the Importance-Performance Analysis (IPA) approach (n = 373). Overall satisfaction with interpretive services at the Southern Sichuan Bamboo Sea was high, and that visitors' satisfaction varied depending on whether they took part in a guided or self-guided interpretive tour. Visitor satisfaction with different interpretive elements were located in different IPA grid quadrants, and indicated elements that required further improvement in order to meet visitors' desired levels of performance (e.g., guides' responsiveness to visitor inquiries, coordination of audio-visual equipment, and the ease of use of multimedia devices). Implications to improve interpretive services of bamboo forestry tourism are proposed, including varied visitor management, and the adoption of a formal experience planning and evaluation system.