Determinants of Tourist Satisfaction and Revisit Intention in Rural Ecotourism Destinations
Author(s): Ramyashree Gopal Nair, Suresh Muralidharan, Tamilarasi Annamalai, Dinesh Kumar Sharma
Affiliation: Department of Commerce, Avinashilingam Institute for Home Science and Higher Education for Women, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India, Department of Economics, Sree Narayana College for Women, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India
Page No: 18-21-
Volume issue & Publishing Year: Volume 3, Issue 3, 2026/03/07
Journal: International Journal of Modern Engineering and Management | IJMEM
ISSN NO: 3048-8230
DOI:
Abstract:
Rural ecotourism — sustainable nature-based tourism in biodiversity-rich rural areas that integrates conservation, local community involvement, and authentic cultural experiences — has emerged as an increasingly significant strategy for rural economic development and biodiversity conservation co-benefits in India. The Western Ghats, one of eight globally recognised biodiversity hotspots and a UNESCO World Heritage Site spanning Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Goa, hosts numerous rural ecotourism initiatives ranging from community homestays and tribal cultural immersion programmes to nature walks and wildlife watching experiences. However, the sustainability and economic viability of these initiatives depend critically on understanding the determinants of tourist satisfaction and the factors that translate satisfaction into revisit intentions and positive word-of-mouth (WOM) recommendations.
This study employs Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) with SmartPLS 4.0 on data collected from 487 domestic and international tourists at 12 ecotourism destinations in the Western Ghats to examine how five dimensions — Perceived Authenticity, Environmental Awareness, Service Quality, Community Involvement, and Cultural Heritage — influence tourist satisfaction, and how satisfaction translates to Revisit Intention and WOM, with Perceived Value moderating the satisfaction-revisit intention pathway. The model achieves excellent fit (RMSEA=0.048, CFI=0.964, TLI=0.958). Community Involvement (β=0.341, p<0.001) and Cultural Heritage (β=0.312, p<0.001) are the strongest predictors of tourist satisfaction, while Service Quality shows the largest importance-performance gap (0.84), identifying the highest-priority improvement area.
Keywords:
ecotourism, rural tourism, tourist satisfaction, revisit intention, structural equation modelling, perceived authenticity, community involvement, Western Ghats, biodiversity, service quality, perceived value, word-of-mouth, SmartPLS, importance-performance analysis
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