What will I share? An evaluation of electronic word-of-mouth on service quality and the tourist experience

A case study in Bento Gonçalves, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

Abstract

A destination's competitiveness and sustainability depend mainly on its ability to provide enriching experiences for visitors while at the same time guaranteeing excellence in service provision (Zibarzani et al., 2022). This research sought to carry out a case study in the city of Bento Gonçalves, located in Rio Grande do Sul, with the Wine Train ride as the object of study, using content generated by users via the Tripadvisor website to analyse the experience of tourists and their perceptions of the quality of services during their train ride. To do this, we used a theoretical review of experience, quality of service, customer satisfaction, user-generated content, and evaluation of tourist services. The methodological approach included the characterisation of the research, the data collection and analysis procedures adopted. The results showed the complexity of analysing quality in tourism, which involves various facets, including the main attraction, secondary services and the parties involved.