Using social networks to document and analyse guests' perceptions and expectations i National Parks in Senegal

Bc. Fatima Beye

Bachelor's thesis

Abstract:

The ecotourism industry is constantly expanding. More and more tourists are travelingworldwide, including in Africa which is the second fastest growing destination. Thedemocratization of the Internet has made that more and more people use social networks,including tourists who share their experiences with destinations. They share there theirsatisfaction as well as their disappointment. Therefore it is important for businesses toinclude the online reviews in their management decisions, as they have the potential toincrease or decrease the number of tourists, hence the incomes. The study analysed thetourists’ expectations and perceptions toward three natural reserves in Senegal usingTripAdvisor’s online reviews. A total of 932 reviews were gathered, then categorized andclassified. The oldest review was published in 2010, the newest one was from January2020. It was found that the determinant factors were the popularity of the animal, thediversity and density of the animals, the interaction with animals, the quality of thecustomer service, the quality of the food served, the attractiveness of the physicalenvironment, the knowledgeability of the guide, the price, the type of activities offered,the animal conservation, the participation of the local community as well as the onlineinformation available. The research revealed that the best-evaluated reserve was Fathalaand the least evaluated was the National Park of Niokolo Koba. Ecotourism has a vitalrole to play because it generates incomes to help to preserve critically endangered species.

Keywords

Social networks, experience, Fathala, Niokolo Koba, TripAdvisor, reviews, satisfaction, ecotourism, Bandia

Jazyk práce: English

Datum vytvoření / odevzdání či podání práce: 15. 5. 2020

Obhajoba závěrečné práce

• Vedúci: Ing. Petra Chaloupková, Ph.D. dr. h. c.

Czech University of Life Sciences Prague

Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences

Bachelor programme / odbor:
Agricultural Specialization / Agriculture in Tropics and Subtropics