Local Tourist Food Consumption Behaviour in Kota Bharu, Kelantan / Soo-Cheng Chuah,Chai Li Cheam and Sulaika Abd. Kadir

Tourism is now one of the rapidly growing industries in the world, as well as a potential sector to
generate economic development. While travelling to a locality, tourists will definitely opt for local authentic food
choices to fulfil their taste buds, which provides good experience for them and adds value to their choices of
destination. Food tourism has grown rapidly in recent years, especially due to the fact that local food playing an
important role in differentiating a destination from another. Therefore, a tourist’s experience of tasting local food
is capable of developing their perceptions and values of the place. In particular, food tourism is one of the
important aspects in promoting Kota Bharu and its cultural tourism, especially for local tourists, as local food is
a manifestation of the national, regional, and cultural values of a tourism destination. This study attempted to
determine the explanatory factors influencing tourist food consumption in Kota Bharu, which was achieved by
collecting a sample size of 236 local tourists using the convenient sampling method. The resulting findings
revealed that price was a major point of concern for domestic tourists in the context of food consumption,
considering the factors of gender, age, or education level accordingly. Bootstrapped multiple regression was
analysed and found out that motivational and physiological factors were affecting food consumption behaviour
among local tourists in Kota Bharu, Kelantan. Therefore, local food operators should take into consideration of
their food prices when developing effective marketing strategies