Community Perception on Tourism Development: A Case Study of Riverston, Matale, Sri Lanka

Abstract

Riverston, Sri Lanka, is famous for its natural and cultural significance. The tourism industry is emerging there and expanding with more community engagement. Riverston being a community-based tourism site, this study aimed at discovering the perception of the Riverston community on tourism development further focusing on the market opportunities, challenges, and strategies for the way forward. Data were collected from the Riverston area community who engage in tourism through in-depth interviews with semi-structured questions, and the sample was selected based on the purposive sampling technique. Data were analyzed through content analysis. The findings disclosed that challenging the authentic culture, traditional livelihood shifting toward tourism, lack of awareness and knowledge of the tourism industry among the community, the impact of legal restrictions on the community, and lack of education are the sociocultural challenges for the community on tourism development. The Riverston area is getting developed in terms of infrastructure with tourism development, and that benefits the living conditions of the community. Further, results indicated forest conversation policies had impacted the community’s living in high magnitude. It persuades people to move away from agriculture to the tourism sector. In addition, the timely need for a well-planned sustainable tourism approach and awareness from ground-level tourism practitioners was underscored by the data set.

Citation

Jayakody, S.P.M.B., Arachchi, R.S.S.W. and Pattiyagedara, P.G.S.S. (2024), "Community Perception on Tourism Development: A Case Study of Riverston, Matale, Sri Lanka", Sharma, A. and Arora, S. (Ed.) Strategic Tourism Planning for Communities (Building the Future of Tourism), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 11-21. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-83549-015-020241002