Título: Perceptions on water based active tourism: A qualitative analysis
Resumen: This study explores factors influencing user dissatisfaction in water sports companies in the Andalusian coast. Thematic Content Analysis was used to identify specific service aspects that triggered negative perceptions.
This research is part of the R+D+I project funded by the Complementary Marine Science Plan of Andalusian Regional Government and the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan.
Companies were selected based on their presence on Tripadvisor and Google Maps, using the categories of dive centers, surf schools, and water sports providers. Only relevant content reviews written in Spanish or English and published between 2022 and 2024 were included in the analysis. After this process, 383 negative reviews were carefully read revealing frequently repeated words associated with dissatisfaction. These were grouped into key service quality dimensions: Tangibles, Reliability, Responsiveness, Assurance and Empathy. This thematic structure, adapted from the SERVQUAL model, provides useful insights for improving service quality, adapting business practices to user expectations and supporting a more competitive blue tourism sector.
Congreso: TMS ALGARVE 2025 (12-15 noviembre de 2025)
