Cultivating Agritourism Destinations in Silang, Cavite: Factors Affecting Tourists’ Decision-Making

Abstract

Agritourism is a growing field in tourism generating both employment and profit gain to farmers as well as an authentic environment tourism experience to tourists. This study aims to determine the factors that led tourists to visit an agritourism destination in Silang, Cavite through a quantitative descriptive method. The objectives were obtained by conducting a survey questionnaire through convinience sampling. The study utilized the existing instrument by Samaraweera & Upekshani (2019) as the basis for the influence of 5A’s (accommodation, attraction, amenities, activities, and accessibility) in tourists’ decision-making. In line with this, we have also gathered the respondents’ profile and we provided a list of agritourism destination sites found in Silang, Cavite, in order to assess the familiarity of the participants in agritourism destinations. The data gathering was accomplished via dissemination of MS Forms and the analysis was conducted using Descriptive Statistics; Frequency, Percentage, and Mean. The results of this study revealed that among the elements of the 5A’s Tourism Model, the Attraction ranks the highest factor that tourists consider upon choosing an agritourism destination. On the other hand – relaxation, unwinding, and stress relieving – serves as the primary reason for the respondent when visiting an agritourism destination. The findings show that all the 5A’s depict a high result in interpretation which is a reliable measurement to evaluate the tourist’s consideration in selecting a destination. Interestingly, the study suggests that despite the perception that farming may primarily appeal to older generations, our study reveals that there is a progressive change in terms of preference in younger individuals where agritourism is gaining popularity.