How are sensory and non-sensory factors linked in food tourism experiences?

What is it about?

Food is a key element in tourism experiences. We investigate the interplay of sensory and non-sensory factors in food tourism experiences and models their influence on satisfaction and behavioural intentions. Sensory factors are important in tourists’ culinary experiences with cleanliness, noise levels and room temperature at the top of the causal chain. Results also indicate the interplay between sensory and non-sensory factors to explain overall satisfaction, intention to return and intention to say positive things.

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Photo by Jay Wennington on Unsplash

Photo by Jay Wennington on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Local food consumption is a core component of tourism experiences; sensory factors such as sight, sound, touch, taste and smell, and non-sensory factors, such as freshness and healthy food or helpful staff are important antecedents of positive experiences. Despite the remarkable progress in food-related tourism research sensory factors often stay undetected and underestimated in terms of their relative importance. These are the research problems, we address: 1. limited knowledge exists on how sensory and non-sensory factors interplay in determining tourists’ behavioural outcomes. 2). The tourism literature overemphasises the relevance of the visual sense. So, we consider a more comprehensive analysis of sensory factors.