Chinese outbound tourists in South Korea : importance,satisfaction and gaps

The main purpose of this study was to explore the travel expectations and satisfaction of Chinese outbound tourists. Based on questionnaire surveys, a total of 581 valid questionnaires were collected and analyzed using Importance-Performance Analysis(IPA). Nine sectors of tourism service in South Korea are presented: hotel service, food service, retail service, police service,customs service, travel agency service, tourism attractions service, public transportation service and overall satisfaction. The findings indicate that the main purpose of Chinese tourists visiting Korea is vacation and leisure, shopping, and business conferences. In terms of importance, the highest importance of Chinese outbound tourists is travel service, while the least is police service.With regards to satisfaction, Chinese outbound tourists are most satisfied with tourism attractions,and the least satisfied with police services. When considering the gap between the importance and satisfaction of Chinese outbound tourists in South Korea, the biggest gap exists in the travel agency service and this must improved in the future; the least gap is for hotel services. Overall, Most Chinese outbound tourists are satisfied with visiting Korea; however, their satisfaction remains lower than expectation. The results of this study provide useful guidance to Korean tourism across a wide range of sectors spanning tourism management, service quality and people-to-people communication. These data will contribute to promoting further friendship between China and South Korea.