Abstract:
Culinary tourism is one of the boosting segments of tourism that highly
affects tourist visitation. Tourists travel all around the world to taste
different cuisines. This study was conducted using the mixed-method
research approach. An online questionnaire survey was conducted using
127 respondents. Multiple regression analysis was applied to examine the
effect of tourists’ expectations on tourists’ satisfaction and especially reveal
the mediating effect of perceived performance on the relationship between
tourists’ expectations and tourists’ satisfaction. The results of the qualitative
analysis are grouped into themes and the themes included staff performance
and satisfaction with food. Further, it disclosed that Sri Lankan cuisines can
be promoted around the globe by combining elements of other traditions of
different countries. Therefore, the results showed that culinary tourists
expect a wide choice of food with different flavours and textures. Tourists
value a favourable atmosphere to consume food and the presentation of food
matters too. This information would be particularly useful for destinations
interested in promoting culinary tourism in Sri Lanka
