Creative tourism experience quality: crossed influences of context, interactions and tourist self-perception

Although increasing attention has been devoted to tourism experience quality, previous research has mainly focused on cultural factors (such as collectivism and indulgence) and tourists’ internal motivations, while paying limited attention to contextual, relational, and individual determinants specific to creative tourism. To address this gap, this study develops an integrative model examining how contextual, relational, and individual antecedents influence creative tourism experience quality dimensions and how these dimensions affect tourists’ intention to relive similar experiences. Based on a quantitative survey of 320 tourists, the results show that sustainability, interactions with local actors, and tourists’ perceived competence significantly shape experience quality. Learning, pleasure, and existential authenticity emerge as key drivers of tourists’ intention to relive similar experiences. The study contributes to a better understanding of how tangible and intangible factors shape high-quality creative tourism experiences and provides guidance for tourism professionals in designing sustainable, interactive, and personalized experiences, thereby enhancing perceived experience quality and tourists’ future engagement.