Make it delightful: Customers' experience, satisfaction and loyalty in Malaysian theme parks

Responding to the need of studies covering the interplay between customer experience and emotions within specific facets of the tourism industry, this study proposed a model to assess vistor experience and its effect on their delight, satisfaction and loyalty in Malaysian theme parks. Based on convenience sampling, a sample of 292 visitors at two theme parks in Malaysia was selected. Data was subjected to partial least squares analysis based on structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). Findings showed that all of the hypotheses were supported, indicating that physical setting, interaction with staff and interaction with other customers had a significant impact on both customer delight and satisfaction. Moreover, customer delight influenced customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. The results suggest that theme park managers need to pay attention to maintaining a good physical setting, managing their human resources well and managing the behaviour of other customers in order to ensure that their customers receive delightful experiences. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.