Customer Experience in Urban Heritage Tourism: Insights from the Palácio da Bolsa

Abstract

Urban heritage tourism plays a pivotal role in sustaining cultural identity and enhancing the experiential value of historic cities. Within this context, the Palácio da Bolsa, a 19th-century neoclassical landmark located in the heart of Porto’s UNESCO-listed historic centre, exemplifies how cultural heritage sites function simultaneously as civic institutions and major tourist attractions. Despite its architectural splendour and symbolic importance, limited empirical research has explored how visitors perceive service quality and how these perceptions shape satisfaction, loyalty, and recommendation behaviour in monument-based settings. This study investigates the visitor experience at the Palácio da Bolsa through a quantitative approach grounded in an adapted SERVQUAL framework, encompassing five core dimensions of service quality: Tangibles, Reliability, Responsiveness, Assurance, and Empathy. A structured on-site survey was conducted with visitors to assess perceptions of service quality and its influence on visitor behaviour. The analysis identified key dimensions—particularly those related to staff competence, trust, and reliability—as the strongest drivers of satisfaction and recommendation. Overall, the findings confirmed that the adapted SERVQUAL framework provides a valid and reliable approach for evaluating service quality in heritage tourism contexts. Results also highlight the continued relevance of human interaction in shaping the heritage experience, while revealing opportunities to enhance visitor engagement through context-sensitive interpretation and optional digital tools. Balancing technological innovation with authenticity and emotional connection emerges as a central challenge for managing visitor experiences in heritage environments. The study contributes to advancing experience-based place management in urban heritage tourism by integrating service quality assessment with experiential and emotional dimensions. It demonstrates that maintaining consistency, professionalism, and authenticity are crucial for sustaining visitor satisfaction and advocacy. By linking established service models with the unique characteristics of urban heritage sites, this research offers both academic insight and practical guidance for designing meaningful, sustainable visitor experiences in culturally significant destinations. This paper expands the understanding of how service quality shapes visitor experience in urban heritage contexts, highlighting the human and experiential dimensions of heritage tourism. Contributes to advancing theoretical and practical insights for developing authentic, emotionally engaging, and sustainable visitor experiences within culturally significant urban destinations.