Where should we go on holiday? Destination Selection with Analytic Hierarchy Process Method in Tourism

Abstract

In holiday planning for consumers, it is quite complicated to decide between different destinations with different properties. The purpose of the study is to test the availability of the Analytic Hierarchy Process in decision making according to a number of criteria, among different destinations. The descriptive study was applied to 80 participants who had visited each of the five destinations at least once. The data were collected by survey method and the sample was chosen according to the convenience sampling method. Participants were asked to make a comparison from five destinations in Turkey (Ayvalık, Çeşme, Kuşadası, Bodrum, Alanya) among the seven criteria (price, historical/natural beauty, quality, leisure facilities, shopping facilities, images, transportation). According to the results of the research, the criteria used by the participants in evaluating the destinations are price, transportation, quality, entertainment, historical/natural beauties, shopping and image in order of importance. In addition, according to the evaluation of the participants by using seven criteria, the ranking of the five destinations is in the form of Bodrum, Kuşadası, Ayvalık, Alanya and Çeşme. The research shows that applying to the Analytic Hierarchy Process in the selection of destinations in which different criteria are in place provides facilitation and objectivity in decision making.