A research on determining the role of country image and destination image in creating a memorable tourism experience

In recent years, the world economy has changed based on experience rather than service. In this economy, consumption of experience comes to the forefront rather than products. In this economy, consumption of experience comes to the forefront rather than products. The changing economy has forced businesses and consumers to change. The presence of a knowledgeable and more demanding consumer has led businesses in the tourism industry to provide personalized experiences rather than focusing on facilities and services. Businesses are trying to create unique experiences to differentiate from their competitors and build customer loyalty. The transformation of these extraordinary and unique experiences into memorable tourism experiences (MTE) affects customer satisfaction and contributes to the success and marketing of destinations. Although tourism has many activities that can provide different experiences to customers, it is very important to uncover the factors that make these experiences memorable. Within this reconstruction, it is necessary to understand the structure and antecedents of MTE. The tourist experience in a destination is an important determinant of his future behavior, since these experiences turn into customer satisfaction and memorable experiences. In order to create a competitive advantage and sustainability in the tourism industry, which has an important place in the economies of the countries, it is very important that tourists gain memorable tourism experience (MTE) in their destination. Because MTE affects the behavioral intention, the loyalty and revisit intention. The aim of the reseach is to find out the impact of country image and destination image on MTE and to reveal the importance of MTE for revisiting. To achieve this goal, Antalya which is one of Turkey's most important tourism destinations was choosen as a sampling. The study was conducted with 707 foreign tourists visiting Antalya during May-October 2018. The data obtained from the study were analyzed with SPSS 20 and LISREL 8.7 packet programs. According to T-Test, ANOVA and hierarchical regression analysis, the effect of country image and destination image on MTE was partially supported. Hedonism, novelty, involvement and knowledge, which are the dimensions of MTE, have a positive effect on the intention of foreign tourist's revisit intention. This research which measures the impact of country image and destination image on MTE is the first study in Turkey. Regarding destination image and country image, there has been an affluent research conducted so far. However, since MTE is a newly researched topic in our country, it is thought that this study will make a significant contribution to the theoretical and managerial field.