The Effects of Motivation, Destination Image and Satisfaction on Rural Tourism Tourists’ Willingness to Revisit

ABSTRACT

With the diversification of tourist demand for a destinations’ supply, rural tourism destinations are facing an increasingly fierce competition environment. Creating brand value and improving tourists’ willingness to revisit has become an inevitable strategic choice for rural tourism destinations. In this study, we proposed a framework of “tourism motivation-destination image-satisfaction-willingness to revisit” to investigate rural tourism. We investigated from the aspects of learning and entertainment motivation, novelty-seeking motivation, natural environment, cultural environment, social environment, infrastructure, and tourist satisfaction. To analyze data, a questionnaire survey was administered to 545 tourists using structural equation modeling (SEM) technology. The findings indicated that learning and entertainment motivation, natural environment, social environment, and tourist satisfaction had a direct and positive effect on tourists’ willingness to revisit. In addition, tourist satisfaction played an intermediary role between tourists’ tourism motivation and destination terrain image and their propensity to return. On this basis, some suggestions and illuminations are put forward to increase tourists’ willingness to revisit.