Cultural contact and future behavioral intention: A case study of foreign tourists visiting cultural and historical sites in Vietnam

The study was conducted to assess the role of cultural contact on tourists’ future behavioral intention based on Theory of Planned Behavior and The Stimulus-Organic-Response theory. This study was conducted using the SMART PLS - SEM data analysis tool to evaluate the linear structure using data obtained from a survey of 412 foreign tourists at cultural and historical tourist attractions in Vietnam. This study found a positive impact of cultural contact on tourists’ future behavior including revisit intention and word-of-mouth intention. In addition, cultural contact also affects future behavior through tourists’ attitudes toward tourist destinations which are expressed as satisfaction and attachment to the destination. Based on the study of the relationship between cultural contact and future behavioral intention through destination attitudes, appropriate recommendations are made to enhance the competitiveness of historical and heritage tourism destinations in Vietnam for the international tourism market.