Measuring visitor experiences at a modern art museum and linkages to the destination community

Abstract. The purpose of this study is to analyse visitors’ experience and likelihood of return to the Italian Museum for Modern and Contemporary Art (MART) based in Rovereto. The empirical data was obtained from a survey undertaken in the months from September to November 2009. A motivation-satisfaction theoretical model is used to analyse the attractiveness factors of the museum based on internal forces (push motivations) and external forces (pull motivation) and the causal relationship to satisfaction and loyalty. A Structural Equation Model (SEM) is used as a confirmatory tool of the hypothetical model. The findings reveal that tourists visiting the MART are mainly motivated by push factors, such as relaxation, looking for a new experience and learning new things. Loyalty also positively influences the probability of returning to the MART and the likelihood of recommending it to friends and family. Visiting the city or the surrounding region of Trentino had no impact on visitors’ satisfaction and loyalty to the MART. Also, loyalty to MART also did not mean that visitors would recommend a visit to the city of Rovereto