The Effect of Memorable Food Experience on Behavioral Intention in Touristic Travel: Sample of Gaziantep

Abstract

Gaziantep, which has a rich cultural and historical background, is one of the most important gastronomic cities in Turkey with its culinary culture and food and is visited by a large number of tourists. Therefore, it is important to determine the memorable food experiences of local tourists visiting Gaziantep and the effects of these experiences on their behavioral intentions. Four hypotheses have been developed for this aim. Quantitative research method was used to test hypotheses and data was obtained by survey technique. Data was collected from the tourists who visited the region between May-June 2020 with e-surveys by using simple clustering sampling technique, which is one of the random sampling methods. When the results of the analysis are examined, it is shown that there is a positive correlation between the dimensions of the memorable dining experience and behavioral intent. It is also found that there is a positive directional and meaningful relationship between the perception of higher value and behavioral intent and the outstanding and delicious dishes that are the dimensions of a memorable dining experience.