The effect of food festival quality on place attachment and destination recommendation intention through festival experience and festival satisfaction: The case of the Didim International Olive Festival

This study explores empirically the effect of festival quality on place attachment and destination recommendation intentions through festival experience and festival satisfaction. A survey was conducted by using a self-administered questionnaire distributed to festival visitors at the third International Olive Festival organized in Didim, Turkey. Data from a convenience sample of participants, producing 186 usable questionnaires, was tested in a structural equation model. The findings demonstrated that the festival quality designed and provided by the festival organizer predicts festival experiences, which in turn significantly affects visitors’ festival satisfaction and destination recommendation intention. Satisfaction with the festival experience also significantly influences visitors’ attachment to the place and their destination recommendation intention. Festival visitors who are attached to the place tend to recommend it. The implications for festival organizers and the study’s limitations are also discussed.