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This study aims to explore the impact of tourists’ perceptions of two rural destination attractiveness dimensions on tourists’ environmentally responsible behavioral intentions (ERBI). Further, the mediating effects of tourists’ green self-identity on the relationship between the perception of rural destination attractiveness and ERBI are investigated.

This study collected survey data from 188 tourists who had visiting experiences in rural attractions located in the Guangdong Province of China. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to test the proposed hypotheses.

The results found that rural destination specialty fresh food attractiveness perceived by tourists was positively associated with their ERBI. Moreover, tourists’ green self-identity positively mediated the perception of rural destination attractiveness and ERBI.

This study explains how the tourists’ perceptions of two rural destination attractiveness dimensions influence their ERBI. By exploring the mediating role of tourists’ green self-identity, this study also emphasizes the transforming mechanism from tourists’ perceived experience to their ERBI. The study provides insights into nature-based tourism destination management and sustainability practices.

To work out an innovative organisation model for tourism destinations in rural areas.

By outlining the problematic of tourism development in rural areas and implementing the concept of network management and the systems theory, we developed an innovative approach to destination management for non‐urban areas.

Network management means a new lesson for destination management. Our model has been conceived to systematically deal with different subsystems and both systemic and non‐systemic entities in a rural destination.

The focus is limited to destination management in rural areas only. Although several methods suit different types of destinations, some seem to be less adequate for rural areas. The model was intended to search an optimal organisational model only.

The model introduces an original approach to the destination management and allows its application in a wide range of real situations. It can help achieving a better organisation and thus an improved competitiveness of a rural destination.

Following COVID-19, the emphasis on tourism development has shifted to rural tourism and eco-destinations for preventive practice of the three Cs – confined spaces, close contact and crowded spaces. Given the potential growth of rural tourism destinations, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is conceivably the first to provide empirical evidence for rural tourism development post-COVID-19, and this study aims to examine the relationship between the potential development of rural tourism destination competitiveness alongside the inherited, created and supporting resources as perceived by domestic tourists.

This study sampled 172 respondents who were all domestic tourists in Malaysia. A partial least square (PLS)-structural equation modeling approach was used to evaluate the developed model, with PLS estimation and hypothesis testing performed using WarpPLS software.

Interestingly, the findings indicate that rural tourism destinations in Sarawak derive competitive advantage from factors that are closely associated with urban destinations (i.e. created and supporting resources), whereas rural-related factors (i.e. inherited resources) are not perceived as a contributor to their competitive advantage.

The findings will assist tourism planners in constructing a deployable rural tourism destination competency index to develop policies and programmes that address specific tourism or rural development objectives in Malaysia and beyond.

The value of present study lies in its examination of the tourists’ perspectives on the factors that provides addition to rural competitive advantage, with an emphasis on a relatively new and contentious post-COVID-19 topic, namely, rural tourism destinations.

For years, the community in Bario has chosen to organize a slow food and cultural festival annually to draw tourists to Bario. The aim of this paper is to explore the staging of slow food events as a high‐yield strategy for rural tourism destinations and how they can be used to move a destination up the value chain in responsible rural tourism practices.

The study adopted an interpretative approach. Participant observation and 15 in‐depth interviews with local and foreign tourists were conducted to elicit responses before, during and after the event. In addition, photography and videography were also employed.

Findings revealed that the event was seen by many as a catalyst for the provision and development of infrastructural development. More importantly, 67 percent of the foreign tourists interviewed state that the price of goods and services at the event are reasonable and affordable, given the unique cultural experience during the festival in Bario. These findings imply that such an event has potential in generating higher yield for a rural destination. However, findings also show that the event could be better marketed and managed.

A significant contribution of this study is its exploration of the use of slow food events in a rural destination as a strategy in generating high yield for a rural tourism destination.

Rural homestays have emerged as an interesting option for tourists. This study aims to assess the role of destination attractiveness factors and travel motivations in homestay choice. The moderating role of need for uniqueness towards enhancing these relationships is also examined.

A survey of 201 Indian tourists who had visited rural homestays in the Uttarakhand state of India was conducted. Data were analyzed using SPSS and WarpPLS, based on structural equation modelling approach.

Results indicate that two destination attractiveness factors – (a) cultural and rural attractions and (b) destination location and transportation – have a significant association with rural homestay choice. Further, need for uniqueness enhances the relationship between natural attractions and choosing rural homestays.

Although there are several studies on rural homestays, there is scant research on the factors influencing the choice of rural homestays from a tourists’ perspective. Besides, studies on rural homestay tourism have not assessed the role of need for uniqueness in influencing such choices. The implications of the study for destination marketers, homestay operators and owners are discussed which would hopefully aid in attracting discerning tourists to the rural homestays to such regions.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the differences and relationships of push and pull motivations in two different rural tourism destinations.

Data were collected from tourists visiting rural tourism companies in Finland and in Tyrol (Austria). The data were analyzed using analysis of variance and correlation coefficients.

The results indicate significant differences of push and pull motivations in the two regions. In addition, tourists motivated by different variables obviously search for different destination attributes. For example, tourists motivated by the search of a once‐in‐a‐lifetime experience expect different destination attributes than those respondents searching for a sense of comfort or an opportunity to relax.

The low sample size in both Tyrol and Finland reduces the generalizability of the results.

The findings can be used by rural tourism companies and practitioners to understand how push and pull motivations affect tourist behaviour. Based on this information, marketing initiatives can be customized for various target segments in this particular market.

This is the first paper to examine the inter‐relationship between push and pull motivations in rural tourism and one of the most detailed studies on rural tourist motivations. Additionally, the comparison of the two countries underlines the assumption, that cultural or macro‐economic variables strongly influence push and pull motivations of consumers.

This paper aims to address lack in destination leadership and to propose a new typology of approaches. Frequently, rural tourism is suggested as a remedy that should enhance the local economy, create new jobs, strengthen the regional identity and finance the infrastructure.

Case study analysis shows that regions, communities, tourism organizations and managers use different strategies to strengthen their tourism offers or to develop new ones. The paper analyzes different development approaches among destinations and discusses their respective leadership structure.

The typology of tourism development models makes the different development options transparent and easy to understand. This may aid a community to support tourism development with spatial planning and avoid conflicts with other forms of land uses. Overall, leadership for rural tourism development should lead to a strategic cooperation between tourism businesses and other organizations based on a commitment to destination coherence.

The chosen research approach is based on the analysis of Central European case studies. Therefore, researchers of other geographical backgrounds are encouraged to test the proposed propositions further.

The presented typology illustrated four distinct options of coherent development strategies, which can support communities/regions to find a long-term decision frame.

The presented typology facilitates collaborative planning, helps operationalize rural tourism development policies and provides the foundation for spatial planning, all of which furthers the linkages between tourism and other sectors in the rural economy.

Value cocreation has become an important way to enhance the brand equity of a tourism destination. Different from common tourism contexts, agritourism has strong participatory and productive characteristics and is regarded as a critical platform of value cocreation. Therefore, this paper aims to explore the relationship between agritourism experience value cocreation and brand equity of rural tourism destinations from the perspective of tourists.

A questionnaire survey was conducted, and 602 valid questionnaires were collected by a random sample in 2021. Structural equation modeling was used to empirically analyze the data.

The results revealed that tourists’ participation, interaction and citizenship behaviors play a critical role in brand equity of rural tourism destinations. Meanwhile, tourists’ interaction and citizenship behaviors influenced brand equity of rural tourism destinations, via hedonic enjoyment and eudaimonia experience, and perceived experience value. Tourists’ participation behavior influenced brand equity of rural tourism destinations via hedonic enjoyment experience and perceived experience value.

This study focusing on agritourism as a critical platform of value cocreation explores the impact of agritourism experience value cocreation on brand equity of rural tourism destinations from the perspective of tourists. It enriches the existing literature on the relationship between value cocreation and brand equity of tourism destination, expands the research on value cocreation and happiness experience and also provides management basis for promoting brand equity of rural tourism destinations.

价值共创已成为提升旅游目的地品牌资产的重要途径。与一般的旅游情境不同, 农业旅游具有强烈的参与性和生产性特征, 被视为价值共创的重要平台。因此, 本文基于游 客视角探讨了农业旅游体验价值共创与乡村旅游目的地品牌资产之间的内在关系。

本文于2021 年实施问卷调查, 随机抽取602 份有效问卷。结构方程模 型用于实证分析数据。

游客参与、互动和公民行为对乡村旅游目的地品牌资产具有关键作用。同时, 游客互动和公民行为通过享乐型和实现型体验以及感知体验价值影响乡村旅游目的地品牌 资产。游客参与行为通过享乐型体验和感知体验价值影响乡村旅游目的地品牌资产。

本研究将农业旅游作为价值共创的重要平台, 基于游客视角探讨了农业旅游 体验价值共创对乡村旅游目的地品牌资产的影响, 丰富了价值共创与旅游目的地品牌资产 关系的文献, 拓展了价值共创与快乐体验的研究, 为促进乡村旅游目的地品牌资产提供了 管理依据。

La cocreación se ha convertido en una forma importante de mejorar el valor de marca de un destino turístico. A diferencia de los entornos turísticos comunes, el agroturismo tiene fuertes características participativas y productivas, y se considera una plataforma indispensable de cocreación de valor. Este artículo explora la relación entre la cocreación de valor de la experiencia de agroturismo y el valor de marca de los destinos de turismo rural desde la perspectiva de los turistas.

Se realizó una encuesta y se recogieron 602 cuestionarios válidos mediante un muestreo aleatorioa en 2021. Se utilizó un modelo de ecuaciones estructurales para analizar empíricamente los datos.

Los resultados revelaron que la participación e interacción de los turistas y los comportamientos de la ciudadanía juegan un papel crítico en el valor de marca de destinos de turismo rural. La interacción de los turistas y los comportamientos de la ciudadanía impactaron el valor de marca de destinos de turismo rural a través del disfrute hedónico, la experiencia eudaimonia y el valor percibido de la experiencia. El comportamiento de participación de los turistas influyó en el valor de marca de los destinos de turismo rural a través de la experiencia hedónica de disfrute y el valor percibido de la experiencia.

Este estudio, centrado en el agroturismo como plataforma importante para la cocreación de valor, explora el impacto de la cocreación de valor de la experiencia de agroturismo en el valor de marca de destinos de turismo rural desde la perspectiva de los turistas. Enriquece la literatura existente sobre la relación entre la cocreación de valor y el valor de marca de los destinos turisticos, expande la investigación sobre la cocreación de valor y la experiencia de felicidad, y ofrece también bases de gestión para promover el valor de marca de destinos de turismo rural.

The literature on the factors generating loyalty towards tourism destinations has seldom focussed its attention on relationship marketing, which has left a gap in the understanding of destination loyalty. This paper aims to examine the influence of relationship quality on rural destination loyalty, approaching this through the variables of trust, attachment and satisfaction.

This study used a quantitative methodology based on an on line survey conducted in Spain. The sample consisted of 464 tourists who participate in rural tourism. The analysis of the proposed model was carried out based on the partial least squares method.

The results confirm that the model has a substantial to moderate explanatory capacity for overall satisfaction and loyalty, in which overall satisfaction acts as a mediator between the variables that make up relationship quality in reference to loyalty.

The main limitations of this research arise from the scarcity of works which aim to understand relationship quality in tourism destinations. To broaden results, it should be applied in other tourism destinations, products, services and experiences.

Destination managers should give relationships a special role in their tourism development programmes in rural tourism contexts.

Rural tourism destinations and companies are generally small-sized organisations that need managerial tools. These can benefit from developing sustainable relationships.

The significant role played by relationship quality regarding destination loyalty is studied in detail in this model.

La literatura sobre los factores que generan lealtad a los destinos turísticos poco ha centrado su atención en el marketing relacional, lo que ha dejado un vacío en la comprensión de la lealtad al destino. Este artículo examina la influencia de la calidad relacional en la lealtad a los destinos rurales, a través de las variables confianza, apego y satisfacción.

Este estudio usa una metodología cuantitativa basada en una encuesta on line realizada en España. La muestra estaba formada por 464 turistas que practican turismo rural. El análisis del modelo propuesto fue llevado a cabo con el método partial least squares.

Los resultados confirman que el modelo tiene una capacidad explicativa sustancial-moderada para la satisfacción global y la lealtad, en la que la satisfacción global actúa como mediadora entre las variables que conforman la calidad relacional y la lealtad.

La principal limitación de esta investigación surge de la escasez de trabajos cuyo objetivo se centra en la comprensión de la calidad relacional en los destinos turísticos. Para ampliar los resultados, habría de aplicarse en otros destinos, productos, servicios y experiencias turísticas.

Los gestores de destinos deberían otorgar un papel especial a las relaciones en sus programas de desarrollo turístico en el medio rural.

Los destinos y empresas de turismo rural son por lo general organizaciones de pequeñas dimensiones que necesitan herramientas para la gestión. Ellas pueden beneficiarse del desarrollo de relaciones sostenibles.

El papel significativo que juega la calidad relacional con respecto a la lealtad al destino, estudiado en detalle en este modelo.

Marketing relacional, Calidad relacional, Lealtad, Destinos rurales, Partial least squares (PLS)

Artículo de investigación

Rural tourism has emerged as one of the potential economic contributors to the country’s economic growth. To this extent, tourism stakeholders are aware of the rural tourism destination competitiveness where the development should be aligned with the objectives to achieve destination competitive advantage. Given the importance of studying factors that contribute to the development of rural tourism competitive advantage, the present study aimed to propose a research framework by identifying six predictors from the local community based on their experiential knowledge.

Data were gathered through a structured questionnaire survey where 144 respondents comprising local communities from Kampung Semadang – Borneo Heights, Sarawak, Malaysia – were involved. To assess the developed model, SmartPLS 2.0 (M3) was applied based on path modelling (measurement model assessment) followed by bootstrapping analysis (structural model assessment).

Interestingly, the findings revealed that the communities believed economic, socio-cultural and environmental impacts significantly contributes to the development of rural tourism competitive advantage. Additionally, communities from Kampung Semadang viewed that both community knowledge and support for tourism greatly affect the development of rural tourism destination competitive advantage. Surprisingly, there was no significant relationship between stakeholder involvement and rural tourism competitive advantage.

From a practical point of view, the findings of the study provide valuable information to tourism stakeholders and policy planners about the importance of tri-dimensional tourism impacts, as well as community knowledge and support in the development of rural tourism destination competitive advantage. In line with policy development or planning for rural tourism development, the tourism stakeholders should pay more concern on the tri-dimensional impacts, the importance of community knowledge about tourism and gaining the community support for tourism development to achieve the goal of competitiveness.

There is lack of study in investigating the development of rural tourism competitive advantage with a holistic framework. This paper studies the intended or unintended economic, socio-cultural and environmental impacts triggered by the tourism activities. This study has also investigated the local communities’ knowledge and supports toward tourism as the community efforts determine the success of a destination management, especially in the rural area. Stakeholder involvement was also examined as the collaboration among relevant parties to create competitive advantage is essential to achieve sustainable rural tourism.