The Determinants of Customer Satisfaction and the Intention to Return : A Study on Tourism Sector of Maldives

Maldives adventures its natural beauty Sea-Sun-Sand for the travelers and in the marketing literature it is called “Sunny Side of Life”. As a destination (Sunny Side of Life), many tourists consider Maldives as a must do content of their bucket lists today. Most believe Maldives as an expensive destination that they can only visit once in their lifetime. Resorts in Maldives are on selfcontained islands, very similar to the outside observer, yet each island with its unique reef and ecological features is a different product from the neighboring resort. Resorts offer complete relaxing experiences and are constantly challenged to find new means of satisfying guests and give them a pleasant experience to encourage for their return. In past decade travelers have been moved down to travel and experience nature which is the fastest growing segment in the tourism sector, also most importantly safe and secure destination are on top priority to choose destinations to travel for leisure holidays (Kimmel, 1999). Additionally, considering to this research it was revealed that destination image and coastal tourism both plays a direct significant role on customer satisfaction and retention in setting of hotel industry of Maldives. The results are supported (1) destination image (ß = 0.263, 26.3% and P = 0.01≤0.05) and (2) coastal tourism (ß = 0.279, 27.9% and P = 0.00≤0.05) respectively