Research of service quality of educational tourism : Travel of underaged from Russia to Finland

The goal of this research was to analyse the service quality of educational trips to Finland by multiple service providers. The scope was restricted to the travel of people aged under 18 years. The sampling strategy used was convenience sampling. Quantitative research method was used in the study due to the under-researched nature of the educational tourism topic. Firstly, an experiential trip to Finland with a group of children and a pilot survey were organised. After the pilot survey, the design and contents of a questionnaire were significantly changed. Secondly, a broader main survey was conducted. Quantitative methods were used for designing the survey and analysing the responses. The SERVPERF model was employed for the design of the questionnaire. The study showed that current educational trips to Finland are perceived as high quality service. Physical environment, responsiveness of organisers and quality-price ratio still require improvements. The following practical recommendations were proposed: introducing communication with foreign peers, enhancing organised social media activity, proposing programmes with multiple trips included. The goals of the research were achieved, and its practical relevance is seen in distribution of the figures to service providers and implication of achieved results