TTLV: Research on tourist satisfaction with Hanoi night tour products

MASTER'S THESIS INFORMATION

1. Student's full name: Tran Thuy Linh 2. Gender: Female

3. Date of birth: March 22, 1994

4. Place of birth: Hanoi

5. Decision on recognition of students No. 4058/2022/QD-XHNV dated December 28, 2022 President of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi

6. Changes in training process: No

7. Thesis topic: Research on tourist satisfaction with Hanoi night tour products

8. Major: Tourism; Code: 8810101.01

9. Scientific instructor: Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Dung, Faculty of Tourism Studies, University of Social Sciences and Humanities, VNU.

10. Summary of thesis results:

The thesis focuses on analyzing factors affecting tourist satisfaction with night tour products in Hanoi, with three typical programs: "Decoding the Imperial Citadel" at Thang Long Imperial Citadel, "Sacred Night" tour at Hoa Lo Prison Relics and "Essence of Confucianism" tour at Van Mieu - Quoc Tu Giam. Based on the SERVQUAL scale adjusted for the night tourism context, the proposed research model includes five main factors: tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and attractiveness, affecting tourist satisfaction, thereby relating to the intention to return and recommend.

The quantitative research results show that all five factors have a positive and statistically significant influence on satisfaction. Satisfaction plays an important mediating role, associated with the intention to return and recommend the night tour product. Control variables such as age, gender and education have insignificant influence.

11. Practical applicability

The research results of the thesis can be directly applied in the management and operation of night tours in Hanoi. Specifically, the results help the organizers and relic management boards better understand the service - content - safety aspects that shape tourist satisfaction, thereby building training programs, pre- and in-tour communication, perfecting the guidance system, light - sound, and designing unique experience activities suitable for the night scene.

In addition, the research results also have reference value for other destinations and tourism businesses in Vietnam in designing strategies for developing night tourism products, implementing service quality management systems, and applying solutions to ensure security - safety - heritage conservation to improve business efficiency and brand image. At the same time, the research can also provide a practical basis for state management agencies in building and perfecting standards and mechanisms to encourage the development of night tourism associated with cultural preservation and management of the urban environment at night.

12. Further research directions

Based on the results achieved and the limitations of the thesis, some further research directions can be deployed to further deepen and expand the issues that have been raised:

- Quantitative research on carrying capacity at key relics: This is an urgent direction to provide a scientific basis for management work, to comprehensively assess capacity in physical, operational and social aspects (visitor density, overload threshold, time-frame allocation), thereby limiting overloading in night tours in Hanoi.

- Conduct in-depth case studies: There needs to be in-depth research into value chain analysis, benefit-sharing mechanisms, security and safety organization and crowd management, as well as the socio-economic effects of night tours on surrounding communities in typical locations such as Thang Long Imperial Citadel, Hoa Lo Prison Relics and Temple of Literature - Quoc Tu Giam.

- Research on the impact of light and noise pollution at night on heritage and nearby residents: This is a long-term strategic interdisciplinary research direction, focusing on changes in light-sound environment, safety perception and comfort of visitors, thereby proposing technical thresholds and optimal operating standards for night tours.

- Comparative analysis of international night tourism management models: Research successful management models at destinations with night heritage tours, draw lessons on licensing, quality standards, coordinating visitor flows, designing multi-sensory experiences and preserving cultural values ​​to apply creatively, suitable to Hanoi's conditions.

- Research on the application of high technology in night tour management and experience: Focus on evaluating the effectiveness and building a model for applying virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), people counting sensors - real-time heat maps, flexible time-slot ticket booking and dynamic pricing to monitor the environment, manage tourists and enrich the experience.

The thesis topic, after being successfully defended, can continue to be invested in and improved to develop into a doctoral thesis according to these research directions.

13. Those published works related to the thesis

(1) Nguyen Ngoc Dung, Tran Thuy Linh. (2025). Exploiting night tour products
serving tourism development in Hanoi.Culture and Arts Magazine

(2) Tran, Thuy Linh. (2024). Urban green tourism: Research from some night tour products in Hanoi. InProceedings of the National Scientific Conference (with review): Green tourism in the context of global climate change - Current situation and solutions (pp. 964-980). Union University.

INFORMATION ON MASTER'S THESIS

1. Full name: Tran Thuy Linh 2. Sex: Female

3. Date of birth: March 22, 1994

4. Place of birth: Hanoi

5. Student recognition decision No. 4058/QD-XHNV dated December 28, 2022 Principal of University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Hanoi National University

6. Changes in the training process: None

7. Thesis title: A Study on Tourist Satisfaction with Night Tour Products in Hanoi.

8. Major: Tourism Code: 8810101.01

9. Scientific supervisor: Prof. Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Dung, Faculty of Tourism Studies, VNU University of Social Sciences and Humanities (VNU-USSH)

10. Summary of the results of the thesis:

The thesis analyzes factors stimulating tourist satisfaction with night tour products in Hanoi, focusing on three flagship programs: Decoding the Citadel at the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long, Sacred Night at the Hoa Lo Prison Relic, and Essence of Scholarship at the Temple of Literature. Based on an adaptation of the SERVQUAL scale to the night-tourism context, the proposed research model includes five key constructs: Tangibles, Reliability, Responsiveness, Assurance, and Attractiveness that affects tourist satisfaction, which in turn relates to revisit and recommendation intentions.

Quantitative results indicate that all five constructs exert positive and significantly significant effects on satisfaction. Satisfaction plays an important mediating role, linking service attributes with revisit/recommendation intentions. Control variables such as age, gender, and education have dismissible effects.

11. Practical applicability

The findings can be applied directly to the management and operation of night tours in Hanoi. specifically, they help tour organizers and site management boards better understand the service, content, and safety dimensions shaping tourist satisfaction, thereby informing staff training, pre- and in-tour communication, improvements to signage and lighting and sound systems, and the design of distinctive experiential activities suited to nighttime settings.

In addition, the results offer reference value for other destinations and tourism enterprises in Vietnam in crafting night-tour product strategies, implementing service quality management systems, and adopting security, safety, and heritage conservation measures to enhance business performance and brand image. The study also provides practical evidence for Government authorities to formulate and refine standards and incentive mechanisms for developing night tourism in conjunction with cultural preservation and nighttime urban environmental management.

12. Future research directions:

Building on the thesis results and acknowledged limitations, several future directions can deepen and broaden the agenda:

- Quantifying night-tour carrying capacity at key heritage sites: Provide scientific foundations for management by assessing capacity across physical, operational, and social dimensions (visitor density, overload thresholds, time-slot distribution) to mitigate crowding on Hanoi night tours.

- In-depth case studies: Analyze value chains, benefit-sharing mechanisms, security and safety organization and crowd management, as well as the sociometric impacts of night tours on surrounding communities at exemplar sites such as the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long, the Hoa Lo Prison Relic, and the Temple of Literature.

- Impacts of light and noise pollution at night on heritage and nearby residents: A long-term interdisciplinary line of inquiry focusing on lighting and acoustic environments, perceived safety and comfort, and reported technical thresholds and optimal operational guidelines for night tours.

- Comparative analysis of international night-tour management models: Draw lessons on licensing, quality standards, visitor-flow coordination, multisensory experience design, and cultural heritage conservation from successful destinations, with creative adaptation to Hanoi's context.

- High-tech applications in night-tour management and experience: Evaluate and model the use of VR/AR, people-counting sensors and real-time heat maps, flexible time-slot ticketing, and dynamic pricing to monitor environments, manage visitors, and enrich experiences.

The thesis topic, upon successful defense, may be further developed into a doctoral thesis along these research directions.

13. Thesis-related publications:

(1) Nguyen Ngoc Dung, Tran Thuy Linh. (2025). Leveraging night tour products to promote tourism development in Hanoi. Journal of Culture and Arts.

(2) Tran, Thuy Linh. (2024). Urban Green Tourism: A Study from Selected Night Tour Products in Hanoi. In the peer-reviewed Proceedings of the National Scientific Conference: Green Tourism in the Context of Global Climate Change - Status and Solutions (pp. 964-980). Trade Union University.