Microsoft Word 2007 ichrie conference Proceedings Final-Final 06-06-07. doc

 
2007 Annual International CHRIE Conference & Exposition 
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Industry environment
Mean rank tests showed that respondents from Dar es Salaam and Mwanza felt most positively about the 
number of hotels in the market being sufficient (Table 2). In contrast, respondents from Arusha ranked third in their 
agreement that hotels are sufficient in the market. K-W Median rank test show that respondents from Mwanza were 
most optimistic regarding the quality of service in small hotels, whereas those from Dar es Salaam were least 
optimistic (Table 3). However, with regard to the quality of small hotel product, respondents from Arusha were most 
optimistic while those from Dar es Salaam who were least optimistic of small hotel product quality. Respondents 
from Mwanza and Dar es Salaam appeared most confident about the level of tourist safety in their cities (Table 2). 
Respondents from Arusha ranked this item lowest amongst the three cities. Availability of small equipment and 
furnishings were ranked highest in Mwanza than in the other two cities. Arusha ranked second for the availability of 
furnishings and Dar es Salaam ranked second for the availability of small equipment. K-W Median tests suggested 
that respondents from Mwanza felt safest regarding the food supply chain while those from Dar es Salaam felt least 
safe. (Table 3). Overall, with regard to industry factors, it would appear that respondents from Mwanza were most 
optimistic and those from Arusha least so. This could have been because of the higher demand pressures in Arusha 
and Dar es Salaam than in Mwanza. For instance, respondents from Arusha did not think that the number of small 
hotels were sufficient in the market. The other two cities may have already had many small hotels or did not have 
necessary demand to require additional capacity. In the case of both Dar es Salaam and Mwanza, the type of 
international travelers that they tend to attract supports the latter possibility. Finally, it was interesting to note that 
respondents from Arusha felt more optimistic than others about the quality of small hotel product and service. 
Higher competition and corresponding demand may have encouraged businesses to provide a better product/service 
offering. With regard to food safety respondents from Mwanza felt safest compared to respondents from the other 
two cities. It is likely that their perceptions were influenced by the fact that they were mostly buying local products.