THE IMPACT OF RELIGIOUS TOURISTS’ SATISFACTION WITH HAJJ SERVICES ON THEIR EXPERIENCE AT THE SACRED PLACES IN SAUDI ARABIA

To identify the impact of satisfaction with the provided services (food quality, transportation, accommodation, medical services and the religious guidance) on the spiritual experience of religious tourists, as well as the potential moderating role of pilgrims’ demographic characteristics on the relationship between service satisfaction and experience. A structured survey was distributed among the domestic pilgrims in Mecca, Saudi Arabia who performed Hajj under the control of three licensed agencies. Results showed that the satisfaction with transportation services and religious guidance were independent antecedent predictors of the spiritual experience. Furthermore, pilgrims’ age had significantly moderated the relationship between satisfaction with medical services and experience. National authorities can effectively improve the spiritual experience by providing comfortable means of transportation and reliable religious scholars to guide the pilgrims at different sacred destinations.