Table of Contents List of Figures 2 Executive Summary 3 1 Introduction 4 2 Innovating Contributions 5 2.1 Americans 5 2.2 Australia, New Zealand and Pacific 6 2.3 Europe, Africa and Middle East 7 2.4 Japan and Korea 8 2.5 Mainland China 9 2.6 South and Southeast Asia 1 2.7 Taiwan and Macau 11 2.8 Overall Tourist Satisfaction Indices by Source Market 12 3 Tourist Satisfaction Indices by Service Sector 13 3.1 Attractions 13 3.2 Hotels 14 3.3 Immigration 15 3.4 Restaurants 16 3.5 Retail Shops 17 3.6 Transportation 18 3.7 Overall Tourist Satisfaction Indices by Sector 19 4 5 Comparison 21 6 Overall Tourist Satisfaction Indices by Destination 22 6.1 Attractions 22 6.2 Hotels 23 6.3 Immigration 23 6.4 Restaurants 24 6.5 Retail Shops 24 6.6 Transportation 25 6.7 Overall Tourist Satisfaction Indices by Destination 25 7 Conclusion 26
3 List of Figures Executive Summary Figure 1 Tourist Satisfaction Index Americas 5 Figure 2 Tourist Satisfaction Index Weights Americas 5 Figure 3 Tourist Satisfaction Index Australia, New Zealand and Pacific 6 Figure 4 Tourist Satisfaction Index Weights Australia, New Zealand and Pacific 6 Figure 5 Tourist Satisfaction Index Europe, Africa and Middle East 7 Figure 6 Tourist Satisfaction Index Weights Europe, Africa and Middle East 7 Figure 7 Tourist Satisfaction Index Japan and Korea 8 Figure 8 Tourist Satisfaction Index Weights Japan and Korea 8 Figure 9 Tourist Satisfaction Index Mainland China 9 Figure 1 Tourist Satisfaction Index Weights Mainland China 9 Figure 11 Tourist Satisfaction Index South and Southeast Asia 1 Figure 12 Tourist Satisfaction Index Weights South and Southeast Asia 1 Figure 13 Tourist Satisfaction Index Taiwan and Macau 11 Figure 14 Tourist Satisfaction Index Weights Taiwan and Macau 11 Figure 15 Overall Tourist Satisfaction Index by Source Market 12 Figure 16 Tourist Satisfaction Index Attractions 13 Figure 17 Tourist Satisfaction Index Hotels 14 This report presents the tourist satisfaction indices for 1. The results are obtained from the PolyU Tourist Satisfaction Index system, which has been developed by the School of Hotel and Tourism Management, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. The system measures the satisfaction levels of Hong Kong inbound tourists across six tourism-related sectors and integrates them into an overall index. The results for this year are encouraging and the tourists appear to be positive about the services received during their visit to Hong Kong. The sectors that have consistently excelled in service performance are transportation, attractions and immigration services. Nevertheless, hotels, restaurants and retail shops also show good results and have managed to exceed the expectations of the tourists. The PolyU tourist satisfaction index for 1 is 73.94, which is higher than last year. Although the majority of the sectors show a slight decline in performance this year, the overall result has improved. This is due to the improved performance of the transportation and attractions sectors, both having a high contribution to the satisfaction levels of inbound tourists to Hong Kong. A growing international network of destinations is developing tourist satisfaction indices. Besides Hong Kong, destinations that are now adopting similar tourist satisfaction indices include Macau, Singapore and Shenzhen. Overall, the tourism industry in Hong Kong is competitive and performs consistently well across comparable sectors. With the system, Hong Kong is able to determine its performance and its competitiveness as an international tourism destination relative to others, allowing it to be more competitive by identifying strategic areas for improvement. Measuring and monitoring tourists satisfaction is important for the development and success of service industries in Hong Kong that depend on tourism. Figure 18 Tourist Satisfaction Index Immigration 15 Figure 19 Tourist Satisfaction Index Restaurants 16 Figure Tourist Satisfaction Index Retail Shops 17 Figure 21 Tourist Satisfaction Index Transportation 18 Figure 22 Overall Tourist Satisfaction Index by Sector 19 Figure 23 Weights Figure 24 Comparison 21 2
5 1 Introduction Over the past decades, Hong Kong has made considerable efforts to improve its tourism infrastructure in order to enhance its overall attractiveness as an international tourism destination. But how does Hong Kong s tourism industry perform over time and relative to other destinations? Providing a general overview of the service performance of the most important and relevant sectors may help answer this question. The ability to continuously monitor and improve tourists satisfaction may determine success in a sustainable manner. Essentially, satisfied tourists are more likely to return and recommend Hong Kong to others. By adopting universal performance reporting techniques, destinations can establish targets to assess its performance over time as well as provide meaningful comparisons to other international tourism destinations. Therefore, we are grateful to our partners for sharing their preliminary results with us for useful benchmarking purposes. 2 Tourist Satisfaction Indices by Source Market 2.1 Americas Among the six sectors, the respondents from this source market were most satisfied with the transportation sector (83.92), followed by the attractions sector (82.32). The remaining four sectors are below an index of 8 points. Figure 1 Tourist Satisfaction Index Americas Institute for Tourism Studies Ngee Ann Polytechnic Shenzhen Tourism College Macau Tourist Satisfaction Index Singapore Tourist Satisfaction Index Shenzhen Tourist Satisfaction Index 1 8 6 83.92 82.32 78.87 76.64 74.7 71.83 Although slight variations in sectors and source markets are present, overall results on comparable sectors provide valuable insights into the performance and competitiveness across the four international tourism destinations. Firstly, the report presents the local performance by sector and source market. The following table indicates the sample size by source market for the. Sample Size by Source Market Transportation Attractions Immigration Hotels Restaurants Retail Shops Source Market Sample Size Americas 355 Australia, New Zealand and Pacific 35 Europe, Africa and Middle East 369 Japan and Korea 362 Mainland China 564 South and Southeast Asia 362 Taiwan and Macau 385 Total 2747 Figure 2 Tourist Satisfaction Index Weights Americas 3% 7% 12% 36% 14% 28% Transportation Retail Shops Attractions Hotels Restaurants Immigration 4
7 2.2 Australia, New Zealand and Pacific 2.3 Europe, Africa and Middle East The visitors from Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific region were most satisfied with the transportation sector (83.31), followed by the attractions (79.51) and immigration sectors (76.27). The last three sectors are all below 75 index points: hotels (73.82), retail shops (72.4), and restaurants (71.88). The tourists from Europe, Africa and the Middle East were most satisfied with the transportation sector (81.42), followed by the attractions (78.78) and the immigration sectors (77.11). The last three sectors are all below 75 index points: retail shops (73.6), restaurants (71.99), and hotels (7.57). Figure 3 Tourist Satisfaction Index Australia, New Zealand and Pacific Figure 5 Tourist Satisfaction Index Europe, Africa and Middle East 1 1 8 83.31 79.51 76.27 73.82 72.4 72.88 8 81.42 78.78 77.11 73.6 71.9 7.57 6 6 Transportation Attractions Immigration Hotels Retail Shops Restaurants Transportation Attractions Immigration Retail Shops Restaurants Hotels Figure 4 Tourist Satisfaction Index Weights Australia, New Zealand and Pacific Figure 6 Tourist Satisfaction Index Weights Europe, Africa and Middle East 8% 4% 28% Attractions 16% 3% 23% Retail Shops 16% Transportation Restaurants Retail Shops Immigration 16% Transportation Hotels 18% 26% Hotels Restaurants 21% 21% Immigration Attractions 6
9 2.4 Japan and Korea 2.5 Mainland China The respondents from Japan and Korea were most satisfied with the transportation sector (71.91). The transportation sector is followed by the immigration (64.88) and attractions sectors (64.78). The remaining three sectors are below 65 index points: hotels (64.68), retail shops (61.34) and restaurants (6.14). The visitors from mainland China were most satisfied with the transportation sector (78.5), followed by the attractions (74.71) and immigration sectors (72.87). The remaining sectors are hotels, retail shops and restaurants with satisfaction indices of 71.81, 67.82 and 62.3, respectively. Figure 7 Tourist Satisfaction Index Japan and Korea Figure 9 Tourist Satisfaction Index Mainland China 1 1 8 6 71.91 64.88 64.78 64.68 61.34 6.14 8 6 78.5 74.71 72.87 71.81 67.82 62.3 Transportation Immigration Attractions Hotels Retail Shops Restaurants Transportation Attractions Immigration Hotels Retail Shops Restaurants Figure 8 Tourist Satisfaction Index Weights Japan and Korea Figure 1 Tourist Satisfaction Index Weights Mainland China 14% 1% 26% Immigration Transportation 14% 11% % Immigration Transportation Retail Shops Retail Shops 15% 18% Hotels Attractions Restaurants 18% 19% Hotels Attractions Restaurants 17% 18% 8
11 2.6 South and Southeast Asia 2.7 Taiwan and Macau The respondents from South and Southeast Asia were least satisfied with the hotels sector, indicating an index figure of 67.27, followed by the restaurants (67.3) and the retail shops sectors (69.76). The transportation (79.38), attractions (79.31) and immigration sectors (72.69) received the highest satisfaction index scores. The tourists from Taiwan and Macau were most satisfied with the transportation sector (73.97), followed by the attractions (68.94) and hotels sectors (68.88). The remaining three sectors are immigration (68.41), retail shops (64.37) and restaurants (62.74). Figure 11 Tourist Satisfaction Index South and Southeast Asia Figure 13 Tourist Satisfaction Index Taiwan and Macau 1 1 8 6 79.38 79.31 72.69 69.76 67.3 67.27 8 6 73.97 68.94 68.88 68.41 64.37 62.74 Transportation Attractions Immigration Retail Shops Restaurants Hotels Transportation Attractions Hotels Immigration Retail Shops Restaurants Figure 12 Tourist Satisfaction Index Weights South and Southeast Asia Figure 14 Tourist Satisfaction Index Weights Taiwan and Macau 15% 2% 25% Hotels 11% 2% Transportation Retail Shops 13% % Attractions 17% Transportation Immigration Immigration Retail Shops 19% 22% Attractions Restaurants 15% 19% Hotels Restaurants 1
13 2.8 Overall Tourist Satisfaction Indices by Source Market The source market with the highest index is Americas, scoring an overall index of 8.38. The tourists from the Americas were satisfied with many of the sectors, giving them scores well above 7 index points. The Americas is followed by Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific region with an overall satisfaction index score of 79.36. The third most satisfied source market is Europe, Africa and Middle East. Visitors from these regions gave an overall score of 76.74. All the remaining source markets are in Asia. South and Southeast Asia appears to be the most satisfied market in Asia with an overall tourist satisfaction index of 72.97. Closely following is the source market of Taiwan and Macau, with an index figure of 72.41. The two remaining source markets are Mainland China, and Japan and Korea, which have overall satisfaction index scores of 71.54 and 64.53, respectively. Figure 15 Overall Tourist Satisfaction Index by Source Market 3 Tourist Satisfaction Indices by Service Sector 3.1 Attractions Among the seven major source markets, the visitors from the Americas were most satisfied with the attractions sector (82.32), followed by Australia, New Zealand and Pacific (79.51), South and Southeast Asia (79.31), Europe, Africa and Middle East (78.78), and Mainland China (74.71). The indices for Taiwan and Macau (68.94) and Japan and Korea (64.78) are below 7. Figure 16 Tourist Satisfaction Index Attractions 1 1 8 6 8.38 79.36 76.74 72.97 72.41 71.54 64.53 8 6 82.32 79.51 79.31 78.78 74.71 68.94 64.78 Americans Australia, New Zealand & Pacific Europe, Africa & Middle East South & Southeast Asia Taiwan & Macau Mainland China Japan & Korea Americans Australia, New Zealand & Pacific South & Southeast Asia Europe, Africa & Middle East Mainland China Taiwan & Macau Japan & Korea 12
15 3.2 Hotels 3.3 Immigration As with the attractions sector, the hotels sector received the highest satisfaction score from the respondents from the Americas (76.64), closely followed by Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific region (73.82). Mainland China ranked third with an index of 71.81. The index figures for Europe, Africa and Middle East and Taiwan and Macau are 7.57 and 68.88, respectively. South and Southeast Asia, and Japan and Korea have index scores of 67.27 and 64.68, respectively. The American tourists were most satisfied with the immigration sector (78.87), followed by Europe, Africa and Middle East (77.11) and Australia, New Zealand and Pacific (76.27). The respondents from mainland China were less satisfied with the immigration sector (72.87) than tourists from the South and Southeast Asia region (72.69). The index figure for Taiwan and Macau is 68.41, followed by Japan and Korea (64.88). Figure 17 Tourist Satisfaction Index Hotels Figure 18 Tourist Satisfaction Index Immigration 1 1 8 6 76.64 73.82 71.81 7.57 68.88 67.27 64.68 8 6 78.87 77.11 76.27 72.87 72.69 68.41 64.88 Americans Australia, New Zealand & Pacific Mainland China Europe, Africa & Middle East Taiwan & Macau South & Southeast Asia Japan & Korea Americans Europe, Africa & Middle East Australia, New Zealand & Pacific Mainland China South & Southeast Asia Taiwan & Macau Japan & Korea 14
17 3.4 Restaurants 3.5 Retail Shops The restaurants sector received the highest satisfaction score from the respondents from the Americas (74.7), followed by Europe, Africa and Middle East (71.99) and Australia, New Zealand and Pacific (71.88). The visitors from the four remaining Asian source markets gave lower satisfaction scores to the restaurants sector with index figures below 7 points. The respondents from Europe, Africa and Middle East were most satisfied with the retail shops sector with an index of 73.6, closely followed by Australia, New Zealand and Pacific (72.4). The index score for the Americas is 71.83. The remaining source markets in Asia have index scores below 7 points. Figure 19 Tourist Satisfaction Index Restaurants Figure Tourist Satisfaction Index Retail Shops 1 1 8 6 74.7 71.99 71.88 67.3 62.74 62.3 6.14 8 6 73.6 72.4 71.83 69.76 67.82 64.37 61.34 Americans Europe, Africa & Middle East Australia, New Zealand & Pacific South & Southeast Asia Taiwan & Macau Mainland China Japan & Korea Europe, Australia, Africa & New Zealand Middle East & Pacific Americans South & Southeast Asia Mainland China Taiwan & Macau Japan & Korea 16
19 3.6 Transportation 3.7 Overall Tourist Satisfaction Indices by Sector The transportation sector received the highest satisfaction score from the tourists from the Americas (83.92), followed by Australia, New Zealand and Pacific (83.31) and Europe, Africa and Middle East (81.42). The remaining four regions are the source markets in Asia with index figures below 8 points. The index score for South and Southeast Asia is 79.38. This is followed by mainland China (78.5), Taiwan and Macau (73.97), and Japan and Korea (71.91). Figure 21 Tourist Satisfaction Index Transportation 1 In terms of the tourist satisfaction indices, a pattern from the breakdown by each sector can be noticed. For most of the sectors, the source markets in Western countries show a higher satisfaction index score than Asian source markets. Particularly, among the seven major source markets, tourists from the Americas were most satisfied with all sectors apart from retail shops. This section presents the overall tourist satisfaction indices by sector. Among the six tourism-related sectors, the transportation sector received the highest index score (78.73), followed by the attractions sector (75.57) and immigration sector (72.85). The hotels sector ranked fourth with an overall index score of 7.52. The satisfaction indices for retail shops and restaurants are 68.66 and 66.61, respectively. 8 83.92 83.31 81.42 79.38 78.5 73.97 71.91 Figure 22 Overall Tourist Satisfaction Indices by Sector 6 1 8 6 78.73 75.57 72.85 7.52 68.66 66.61 Americans Australia, New Zealand & Pacific Europe, Africa & Middle East South & Southeast Asia Mainland China Taiwan & Macau Japan & Korea Transportation Attractions Immigration Hotels Retail Shops Restaurants 18
21 4 Given the sectoral tourist satisfaction indices presented previously, the calculated PolyU tourist satisfaction index for 1 is 73.94. The index represents the overall tourist satisfaction with Hong Kong as a destination based on tourists satisfaction with the attractions, hotels, immigration, restaurants, retail shops, and transportation sectors. As shown in the pie diagram below, the weights indicate the difference in contribution to satisfaction by sector. The transportation sector contributes the most to tourists overall satisfaction, the restaurants the least. Figure 23 Weights 5 Comparison The for 1 (73.94) is higher than that of 9 (72.65). This indicates that the overall performance of the tourism industry in Hong Kong has improved over the past year. However, when taking a closer look at the performance of the individual sectors it is noticed that the majority of the sectors are slightly underperforming compared with last year. The overall result is influenced by the greater contribution of the attractions and transportation sectors to the satisfaction levels of the inbound tourists. Figure 24 Comparison 11% 14% 22% Transportation Retail Shops 1 8 9 1 Immigration 6 17% 18% Attractions Hotels 18% Restaurants Transportation Attractions Immigration Hotels Retail Shops Restaurants
23 6 Overall Tourist Satisfaction Indices by Destination 6.2 Hotels The hotels sector received the highest satisfaction score from the respondents visiting Hong Kong (7.52), followed by Singapore (67.79). Shenzhen ranked third with an index of 63.88 and the index figure for Macau is 63.8. Based on the system, Institute for Tourism Studies, Macau, Ngee Ann Polytechnic of Singapore and the Shenzhen Tourism School of Jinan University, P.R. China, also compiled 1 tourist satisfaction indices for Macau, Singapore and Shenzhen. These indices allow a cross destination comparison to be made so that the competitiveness of different destinations in terms of tourists satisfaction could be assessed. 8 6 7.52 67.79 63.88 63.8 6.1 Attractions The visitors were most satisfied with the attractions in Macau (75.85), followed by Hong Kong (75.57), Singapore (74.75) and Shenzhen (66.49). Hong Kong Singapore Shenzhen Macau 1 6.3 Immigration 8 6 75.85 75.57 74.75 66.49 The tourists in Singapore were most satisfied with the immigration sector (73.88), followed by Hong Kong (72.85). The respondents gave Macau an index score of 68.9 and Shenzhen an index score of 61.81. 1 Macau Hong Kong Singapore Shenzhen 8 6 73.88 72.85 68.9 61.81 Singapore Hong Kong Macau Shenzhen 22
25 6.4 Restaurants 6.6 Transportation The restaurants sector received the highest satisfaction score from the respondents visiting Singapore (7.39). The tourists gave Macau a satisfaction score of 68.6. The index of Hong Kong stands at 66.61 and Shenzhen has an index of 6.64. In general, the satisfaction indices for the transportation sector are higher than the other sectors. The transportation sector received the highest satisfaction score from the respondents visiting Hong Kong (78.73), followed by Singapore (77.6). Macau and Shenzhen received index figures of 76. and 68., respectively. 1 1 8 6 7.39 68.6 66.61 6.64 8 6 78.73 77.6 76. 68. Singapore Macau Hong Kong Shenzhen Hong Kong Singapore Macau Shenzhen 6.5 Retail Shops 6.7 Overall Tourist Satisfaction Indices by Destination The index score for Singapore stands at 7.5. The respondents went to Hong Kong gave the retail shops sector an index of 68.66, which is closely followed by Macau (68.). Shenzhen reports a satisfaction index score of 6.98. Tourists gave Hong Kong an overall score of 73.94. Hong Kong is followed by Singapore with an aggregated satisfaction index score of 72.14. The overall satisfaction index for Macau is 71. while Shenzhen received an index score of 63.49. 1 1 8 6 7.5 68.66 68. 6.98 8 6 73.94 72.14 71. 63.49 Singapore Hong Kong Macau Shenzhen Hong Kong Singapore Macau Shenzhen 24
27 7 Conclusion The first step in the assessment of competitiveness across international tourism destinations has been successfully completed. This would not have been possible without the help from our partners in Macau, Singapore and Shenzhen. The results demonstrate that the system can be used as a reliable yardstick to assess tourist s satisfaction over time and as an international benchmarking tool. The system could prove to be a universal indicator of performance for tourism-related organizations, service sectors and the whole tourism industry. Furthermore, showing increased transparency and accountability, the performance measures will enable the service providers to establish a platform upon which they can clearly articulate their contribution to the destination and the local community. Apart from the slight decline in the performance of some sectors, the overall result for Hong Kong has improved this year. However, in order for Hong Kong to consolidate its position internationally, initiatives are needed to be taken to achieve this end. Although progress takes time, measures will assure that improvement will be made in the economy and society and guarantee the well-being of all stakeholders concerned. Acknowledgement and encouragement is necessary to award those who take the front role in setting and exceeding new service standards. Monitoring the performance and outcomes is essential because tourists are an important source of receipts for any destination. By establishing a measure of tourist satisfaction with reliable and valid links to strategic goals, the system may even help instill a long-term perspective in regulators, investors and other tourism stakeholders. Armed with this information, organizations that cater for tourists can identify areas for further improvement and, correspondingly, implement relevant procedures to enhance tourist satisfaction levels. Enquiries: Professor Haiyan Song School of Hotel and Tourism Management The Hong Kong Polytechnic University Tel : +852 2766-6372 E-mail : hmsong@polyu.edu.hk Website : www.polyu.edu.hk/htm 26
The research team would like to thank The Hong Kong Polytechnic University for providing financial support for this project (Grant No. 1-BB61).