Effect of Perceived Risks on Revisit Intentions of International Tourists in Mombasa County, Kenya

Abstract

Tourists’ perceptions of risk on travel destinations are thought to be one of the key determinants of their decision to revisit a destination. To manage demand in the tourism and travel industry, it is imperative that the possible effect of the risk factors associated with a destination is understood and how it influences tourists’ choice. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of perceived risks on revisit intentions of international tourists in Mombasa County, Kenya. The specific objectives were to: establish the challenges faced by international tourists visiting Mombasa County; determine the effect of political, terrorism and health risks on the revisit intention of international tourists in Mombasa County. Anchored on the Expectation-Confirmation theory, the study adopted convergent parallel mixed method research design. Using Taro Yamane Table, a sample size of 400 foreign tourists was selected from a target population of 1.46 million international tourists visiting Mombasa County annually. The study established that crime, political unrest, natural disasters, and disease outbreaks were the major risks perceived by international tourists visiting Mombasa County, though to a minimal level (mean 2.6). Concerning the nature of association between the study variables, the findings indicates that perceived political risks had a negative relationship with revisit intention, though insignificant (β= -.135, p = 0.067) while terrorism related risks and tourists’ intention to revisit had a significant negative relationship (β= -.512, p = 0.001). In regards to the effect of health risks on tourist’s revisit intentions, the findings revealed a significant negative relationship (β= -.841, p = 0.001) between the two variables. The coefficient of determination (R2=0.506) computed meant that the overall perceived risks cause an impact of approximately 50% of tourist’s intention to revisit. The study concluded that both political and terrorism risk have a negative, but insignificant effect on the international tourists’ revisit intention in Mombasa county. Additionally, the health risk has a negative and significant effect on tourists’ revisit intention in Mombasa County. The study recommends that tourism operators, national and county government officials should take necessary actions to control future incidences of political, terrorism and health risks in the county since it results in reduced tourist arrivals in the county. It is hoped that the findings of this study will form part of the action plans that will help the Mombasa County to be innovative in order to gain competitive advantage over its competitors as they would be able to make informed decisions on issues that will boost their international visitors, base.