PERCEIVED FACTORS AFFECTING THE PATRONAGE OF DOMESTIC TOURISM IN OSUN STATE, NIGERIA (original) (raw)

2022, xxi. Boluwaji, F. A., Adeleke, B. O. and Ogunsusi, K. (2022). Perceived factors affecting the patronage of domestic tourism in Osun state, Nigeria. Elizade University Journal of Research in Hospitality and Tourism Management, 4: 733-745.

The study assessed the perceived factors affecting the patronage of domestic tourism in Osun State, Nigeria.The natural, historical and man-made facilities in the State are enough to support domestic tourism but not properly harnessed. The research adopted quantitative method and utilised primary data to administer questionnaire to eight strata of respondents in 27 tourist destinations. Travel characteristics of respondents were represented through a line graph. Data were analysed using linear regression and Pearson correlation. Results on the educational background of the respondents revealed that 63.9% had tertiary education, with distribution of respondents showed that students and private employees comprised of 13.2% each, as 50.70% of the respondents are in the age level of 20-39 years. Majority of the categories of respondents travelled for pleasure and leisure purposes, followed by visiting friends/ relatives as well as other purposes, and lastly travelling for business purposes. Findings from the study showed that there was a strong, positive and statistically significant correlation between level of awareness and domestic tourism activities (r = 0.966, n = 371, p = 0 .000). The level of patronage of domestic tourism was significantly influenced by the socioeconomic characteristics of respondents with regards to education, income, occupation, and age. There was also a strong, positive and statistically significant correlation between level of accessibility of tourist destinations and domestic tourism patronage (r = 0.706, n = 371, p = 0.005). Findings of the study show that respondents were more involved in domestic tourism activities for pleasure/leisure purpose. Education, Income, Occupation, and Age had a positive influence on patronage or participation of the residents of the state in tourism related activities, as poor accessibility also affects patronage. The study concluded that socioeconomic characteristics of Osun state residents such as education, income, occupation, and age had a positive influence on participation in tourism related activities particularly pleasure/leisure, and recommended better accessibility in terms of good road and signage for direction to tourist destinations.