Rural Tourism Development in Hoi an, Vietnam; Perceptions of the Community

Abstract

Undoubtedly, tourism is growing strongly worldwide, especially in developing countries and rural areas. Tourism has both positive and negative impacts on tourist destinations that link sustainable development's economic, social, and environmental components. The local community's attitude is crucial for future tourism planning, management, and development of a tourism destination. As such, the paper analyzes the attitudes and perceptions of the residents towards tourism development in the rural areas in Hoi A city, Quang Nam province. Questionnaires related to the local demographics, people's assessment of tourism impacts, and their support for future tourism development were sent to 179 households participating in tourism sectors in four rural areas of Hoi A city. Descriptive statistics and principal component analysis were used to analyze the collected data. The results indicate that tourism brings many benefits in all aspects. Culture – society, environment, and education promote residents' support for tourism development.