DEVELOPING DESTINATION LOYALTY: THE CASE OF HAINAN ISLAND

• This study examines the factors influencing tourists’ destination loyalty formation.
• Familiarity has a significant positive impact on destination image formation.
• Destination image significantly affects satisfaction which in turn leads to loyalty.
• Perceived value significantly affects satisfaction which is an antecedent to loyalty.

The purpose of this study was to develop an integrated model to examine the antecedents to Chinese domestic tourists’ destination loyalty. Chinese tourists are rapidly gaining attention from both researchers and practitioners, mainly due to their enormous economic implications; however, this is still a largely understudied group in tourism and hospitality literature. Data were collected from tourists to Hainan Island, China and analyzed utilizing a structural equation modeling approach. Findings of this study revealed that destination familiarity, destination image, perceived value, and tourist satisfaction all influenced Chinese domestic tourists’ destination loyalty. Implications for Hainan tourism marketers and managers were discussed.