Festival attachment: antecedents and effects on place attachment and place loyalty

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to propose the mechanism of festival attachment and examine how it serves as a significant predictor of place attachment and place loyalty. Design/methodology/approach - Through on-site survey with convenience sampling, 465 visitors were surveyed at the Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival, which is one of the most famous Taiwanese festivals. Structural equation modeling is used to examine the proposed research model. Findings - Empirical results of this study reveal that "hedonism" is the most important antecedent for improving festival attachment, followed by novelty seeking, attractions and cultural exploration. Festival attachment exerts positive effects on place attachment, which then increases place loyalty. Moreover, place attachment partially mediates the relationship between festival attachment and place loyalty. Originality/value - By hosting festivals, festival managers can induce festival attachment in visitors and then transfer the attachment with festivals into the host place. The findings of this study demonstrate the major role of festivals in promoting local tourism.