Gastronomic experiential value, destination image and behavioral intention relationship: A research in UNESCO gastronomy cities

The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between the perceptions of the tourists from the experience of gastronomic products and their perceptions of destination image and behavioral intentions. In this context, in the first part of the research, the relationship and the hypotheses of the research are revealed by discussing the relationship between variables. In the second part, the conceptual framework was formed by examining the literature about the variables of experiential value, destination image and behavioral intention. In the third part of the research, methods, analysis and findings; in the fourth/last part, there are results, discussions and suggestions. Which has been registered by UNESCO within the scope of application of the research, Turkey's "gastronomic cities" Gaziantep and Hatay provinces of visiting and convenience sampling are not based on probability by sampling data was collected by questionnaire technique selected from 809 local tourists. Exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, descriptive analysis, path analysis and mediation analysis were used for the analysis of the data set. According to the results of the analysis, tourists access information about the destination through social media and the most visited places are local restaurants. The effect of epistemic value on destination image and the effect of emotional value, quality value and health value on behavioral intent are not supported. However, other hypotheses have been supported. In addition, it has been proven by the analyzes made within the scope of this research that the image of the destination plays a mediating role in the effect of gastronomic experiential value on behavioral intent.