HOW VISITORS EXPERIENCE TOURIST DESTINATIONS? A CASE STUDY OF CROATIA AND MACEDONIA

This study aims to measure and compare visitors tourism experience at two different tourist destinations. On-site survey was conducted in Opatija Riviera (Croatia) and Ohrid Riviera (Macedonia). The research instrument for collecting data was divided into two main parts. The first part was designed to measure tourism experiences, using multiple-item scale with 34 items. The second part of the research instrument was designed to measure demographic characteristics of the respondents, which included: gender, age, marital status, frequency of visit, employment status, education, source of information, type of accommodation, and length of stay. Bivariate analysis was used to test the significance of difference between two tourist destinations and their visitors. The results of analysis showed significant differences in ten out of 34 tourism experience items, revealing that self-beneficial experience was rated significantly higher in Croatia, while hospitality of local people and tourist-guides were rated significantly higher in Macedonia. The results presented in this study may contribute to the existing literature of tourism experience construct, indicating how different tourist destination attributes contribute to visitors' experience of the destination.