Tourists’ Perception of Heritage Sites in Bangladesh: An Investigation from the Demand-Supply Perspectives

Abstract

Heritage Tourism is a branch of tourism oriented towards the cultural heritage of the location where tourism is occurring. Heritage tourism can encourage the revival of traditions and the restoration of sites and monuments. Based on the literature search, it has been identified that there is a lack of studies regarding the tourists’ perception of heritage tourism sites in Bangladesh. Therefore, this study explores these gaps by examining the demand-side and supply-side perceptions of tourists visiting the cultural heritage sites in Bangladesh, namely in Paharpur, Mahansthangarh, and Naogaon. Existing research explored statistically significant negative gaps in the perceptions between tourists and tourism service providers. This further expedites the study of destination competitiveness to develop a healthy heritage tourism industry in Bangladesh. Future policymakers are urged to embrace a comprehensive perspective that weighs both the advantages and disadvantages of sustainable heritage tourism development. The incorporation of cultural assets into more comprehensive development plans regulates the expansion of tourism, and provides supporting frameworks.  Furthermore, SMART PLS 3.0 was employed, and the structural equation model indicates statistically significant path coefficients from cultural authenticity, heritage site accessibility, interpretation, and information services, visitor facilities, and infrastructure to tourist satisfaction (t = 5.045, p = 0.000; t = 3.058, p = 0.002; t = 9.055, p = 0.000; t = 12.252, p = 0.005). Thus, this study intends to explore the competitiveness of Bangladesh’s cultural heritage destination regarding tourist satisfaction level in the world’s heritage tourism context.