Abstract:
Although Quality service in a rural setting is an essential aspect of rural tourism, service quality attributes are less discussed in rural tourism literature. This study investigates tourists' perceptions to identify important factors and existing levels of performance to provide a quality service in rural settings. Accordingly, we use Importance Performance Analysis (IPA) as an analytical frame of reference. Through a rigorous process, 25 service quality attributes were selected to generate tourists' perspectives on the importance and performance of rural tourism in Bangladesh. Data have been collected via a structured questionnaire from 500 respondents. The collected data were analysed using descriptive statistics. The investigation reveals that despite having all-natural resources, Bangladesh failed to flourish in rural tourism due to lacking human-made elements such as infrastructure and tourist facilities. This study will help the tourism stakeholders who provide services in rural settings understand the expectations of tourists. It will also help the policymakers to (re)shape tourism policy to make constructive decisions in developing rural tourism across the country.
