Satisfaction Analysis of Religious Tourism Service with Emphasis on the Role of Environmental Factors, the Case Study of Shahcheragh Shrine in Shiraz

Religious tourism and pilgrims are conducted to visit holy sites and do religious ceremonies and are regarded as an economic resource for the religious and historice cities. Since the holy sites are located within the historical context and the central areas of historic cities, they are encountered with structural constraints in terms of access, legebility and overall physical values, thus making planning difficult in these textures. The quality, frequency and variety of services offered in the indoor and the outdoor physical environment have a huge impact on the wellbeing of tourists and could be a factor to encourage them to return and visit again. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate the satisfaction of service quality for different economic-social groups and present strategies to address shortcomings. The aim of this study was to determine satisfaction level of indigenous and non-indigenous pilgrims of the Shahcheragh shrine in terms of service quality, facilities, equipments and services inside the shrine and the surrounding urban environment. Data for this study were collected through questionnaires using random sampling method. The analysis of data was undertaken applying statistical tests such as paired comparison tests, ANOVA and non-parametric correlation test. The results show that in the current situation the satisfaction level of indigenous and non-indigenous visitors was reported above average. The satisfaction of tourists was found a function of socio-economic conditions, therefore, practical suggestions are provided by gender, income, place of residence (native-non-native), education and health condition categories.