THE PARALLEL MEDIATORS OF TOURIST SATISFACTION AND PLACE ATTACHMENT ON PERCEIVED VALUE AND DESTINATION LOYALTY RELATIONSHIP

Langkawi Island, the first Global Geopark in Southeast Asia, is believed to experience an unstable and sluggish growth rate pattern of domestic tourist arrivals. Hence, to curb the situation from persisting, the main objective of this study is to enhance the destination loyalty through its factors, namely, perceived value, tourist satisfaction, place attachment. The target population of this study is domestic tourists who have visited Langkawi Island. A self-administered questionnaire using google form has been distributed to the respondents who have visited the island for at least 24 hours and staying not more than a year. The 244 data collected were analysed using SMART-PLS version 4.0. Interestingly, this study has verified two parallel mediators, tourist satisfaction and place attachment on the relationship between perceived value and destination loyalty. Focusing on these factors, the study would provide practical strategies and plans for tourism management on this island to enhance loyalty among domestic tourists. Furthermore, it is believed that the findings would assist local business enterprises and tour agencies to grasp continuous benefits from loyal tourists to this island.