Visitor satisfaction at the museum: Italian versus foreign visitors

Trying to understand what comprises and infl uences visitor satisfaction is one of the most relevant areas of research for the tourism sector. Th e aim of this study is to analyse which factors infl uence overall satisfaction with visitors to the museum, with particular interest in national origin, feelings, and motivations. Th e research is based on 1,038 questionnaires collected from June to December 2011 among the visitors of the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology (Ötzi) in Bolzano, Northern Italy. Logit models were used in order to estimate the set of independent variables which signifi cantly infl uence both the overall satisfaction of the sample and the diff erences between Italian and foreign visitors in the perception of satisfaction. Th e results suggested that the overall satisfaction was related to the national origin of respondents, their feelings and motivations. Furthermore, opinion about showrooms and other services received during the visit appears to be positively and signifi cantly related to overall satisfaction. From this knowledge, museum managers are more equipped to off er the optimal museum experience, as are museum marketers in their advertisement campaigns in Italy and abroad.