Sustainable Archaeological Tourism in Dhaka: An Empirical Study on Heritage Conservation Practices

Abstract

Archaeological tourism is a major area of tourism. It is not a recent idea or phenomenon, but it has recently increased in prominence and become very popular today. This research attempts to identify the prime factors associated with the sustainability of archaeological tourism sites in Dhaka city, Bangladesh. A quantitative method has been applied to the responses of 100 respondents on the sustainability of archaeological tourism sites. Due to the prolonged two-and-a-half-year COVID-19 pandemic, data are collected through an online e-questionnaire. In order to conduct the research, some statistical tools have been used. Among them, SPSS is the main tool for analysing the collected data. Here, the researchers have done a Regression test, an ANOVA test, correlations, Data frequency test. The findings of this research paper show that tourism sustainability results in long-term economic benefits and helps preserve archaeological history. This paper suggests that the sustainability of archaeological tourism sites helps increase visitor arrivals, enhance tourists’ satisfaction, enhance the learning of history through storytelling, and revive ancient arts and culture. However, technological innovativeness, overcrowding, and waste management have negative impacts on the sustainability of archaeological tourism sites. For the betterment of tourism sustainability, archaeological sites need to manage and control overcrowding. This paper is expected to help scholars, learners, and policy planners adopt measures that may ensure the sustainability of archaeological tourism sites.