Experiences, motivations, perceptions, and attitudes regarding ethnic minority village tourism

Abstract

Ethnic minority villages are a vital part of tourism in certain destinations, often attracting many domestic and international visitors to experience unique local cultures and authentic lifestyles. However, much of the relevant literature has not examined tourist motivations, perceptions, and attitudes regarding ethnic minority village tourism. This exploratory qualitative research analyzed user-generated blogs uploaded by people sharing their ethnic minority village experiences in Guizhou Province, China. ROST Content Mining6 software was employed to identify motivations, perceptions, and attitudes toward minority village tourism. The findings indicated that tourist experience included natural aesthetic, cultural aesthetic, service and interaction, and entertainment. The main motivation was to experience unique cultural activities. The strongest perceptions were of the local villagers, Miao and Dong family life, and tourism services and environments. Tourist attitudes were mostly positive. Suggestions for better satisfying tourist needs and improving experiences were derived from the data.