Abstract
Tourist Satisfaction in Purchasing Trips through Online Travel Agencies: The Case of Istanbul
The internet which appeared as a result of information and communication technologies affected travel industry as well as other industries. The internet also brought the competition among travel agents to the online area. Since the consumers started to use the internet for travel and holiday bookings, travel agencies have had to use internet more effectively every day and carried out their marketing activities on online platforms. As a result, the importance of website quality has increased for travel agencies implementing marketing activities online.
In this research, a questionnaire was created by means of e-satisfaction scale developed by Szymanski and Hise (2000) and web quality scale developed by Barnes and Vidgen (2002). The questionnaire was administered by using deliberate (decisional) sampling which is one of the non-probability sampling methods to 530 local and foreign tourists who visited Istanbul through face to face interview method between July and December of 2015. At the end of the study, it was determined that participants' e-satisfaction levels and their perspectives regarding web quality service criteria have changed according to participants' demographic variables. Moreover, it was identified that there is a positive relationship between participants' e-satisfaction and web quality. The results of the study not only contribute to the literature but also tourism and travel industry marketers.
Keywords
Online travel agencies, Tourist satisfaction, Istanbul.
