Journal of Tourism and Development

Journal of Tourism and Development

Visitor Experience Management in Religious Attractions (A Case Study of Imamzadeh Saleh in Tajrish and Shah Abdolazim in Rey)

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
1 Assistant Professor, Department of Iranian Studies, Vali-e-Asr University of Rafsanjan, Iran.
2 Department of Tourism Management, ,Faculty of Management and Accounting, University of Allameh Tabatabaei, Tehran, Iran
3 Department of Geography, Faculty of Geography, Yazd University, Yazd, Iran
10.22034/jtd.2026.547736.3132
Abstract
Religious tourism constitutes a significant segment of global tourism, attracting numerous visitors from across the world to religious sites. Understanding the fundamental dimensions of experiences in religious heritage destinations facilitates the evaluation of visitor experiences and leads to the development of more effective management strategies. By considering the expectations and preferences of tourists and striving to enhance their satisfaction, it is possible to achieve successful performance in this field of tourism. The aim of this study is to evaluate the visitor experience at two religious sites: Imamzadeh Saleh in Tajrish and Shah Abdolazim in Rey. The evaluation was conducted across five dimensions: religious and cultural factors, environmental factors, economic factors, services and facilities, and human factors. Data were collected through a questionnaire, in which respondents were asked to assess both the importance of these aspects and their level of satisfaction with each attribute using a five-point Likert scale. To examine the positioning of the indicators related to each latent construct, a second-order confirmatory factor analysis with five factors was applied using the maximum likelihood method in AMOS 26 software. The findings indicate that service and facility factors, environmental factors, and economic factors exerted the greatest influence on the construct of visitor experience. Accordingly, among all associated constructs, the latent variable of visitor experience was explained most strongly by services and facilities and least by human factors.
Keywords


Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 20 May 2026