Contribution of tour guides’ competence in interpretation of information on tourists’ satisfaction at Rimoi National Reserve, Kenya

Abstract

Several tourist destinations in Kenya have remained underutilized as evidenced by the limited number of visitors. Decline in the number of tourist visits is felt across the country where many of the tourists have continued to cancel their trips while others have limited their duration of stay. This has been pointed by UNWTO, stating that there has been a negative decline in tourism growth reported for years 2016 to 2017 by 5% to 7% respectively. Not to be ignored from the other factors affecting tourist attraction and growth is the role of tourist guides. This is because not much have been talked about on their role and influence on tourism. Tour guides play important roles such as; enhancing the social environment, language interpretation, addressing tourist concerns, ensuring travelers’ comfort, and promoting a safe environment for tourists. In addition, tour guides serve as essential frontline workers that provide the ‘moment of truth’ for holiday-makers, and are critical for tourists’ satisfaction. Tour guides competence in interpretation of information is key in enhancing visitor satisfaction. Previous studies have identified a crucial need for research on the influence of tour guides’ communicative competencies on tourist satisfaction. With Rimoi National Reserve, Kenya as a study area, this research assessed the contribution of tour guides competence in interpretation of information on tourist satisfaction. Specifically, the study objectives included; To determine the tour guides’ knowledge level in interpretation of information on tourist satisfaction at Rimoi National Reserve, Kenya, to establish the tour guides’ communicative skills in interpretation of information on tourist satisfaction at Rimoi National Reserve, Kenya, and to examine the tour guides’ attributes in interpretation of information on tourist satisfaction at Rimoi National Reserve, Kenya. The study was guided by the communicative model of competence. The research used descriptive case study research design, and targeted 1,280tourists from which a sample of 128 tourists were selected through stratified and systematic random sampling techniques. Closed-ended questionnaires were issued to the tourists to collect primary data. Both inferential and descriptive statistics were undertaken. Descriptive statistics were presented through mean and percentages while inferential statistics included multiple regression analysis. From the regression model R 2 =0.717 which indicates that competency of the tour guide explains 71.7% variance in tourist satisfaction. Results indicate that knowledge level (r=0.798 p=0.001), communicative skills (r=0.83, P=0.001) and tour guides attributes (r=0.85, p=0.001) contribute significantly to tourist satisfaction. In conclusion the study revealed that the tour guides knowledge level rating was lower than the communicative skills and tour guides’ attributes. Therefore, the study recommends that the stakeholders especially tour companies and the Rimoi National Reserve Management to enhance tour guides’ knowledge level through on- job training. The study also recommends the encouragement of tour guides to collaborate with their employers when they encounter a new issue for better decision- making when solving problems.