From Taste to Place: Sustainable Experiential Value Formation in Rural Tourism

This study examines how value is constructed in sustainable rural tourism through the integration of local gastronomy and spatially embedded accommodation. Although sustainability is commonly treated as an evaluative dimension, limited attention has been given to how it is experienced and internalized within tourism contexts. Addressing this gap, the study develops and empirically tests a process-based model in which Local Gastronomic Authenticity initiates a sequential pathway through Spatial Immersion, Perceived Sustainability Value, and Experiential Enrichment, ultimately shaping Behavioral Intention. Data were collected from 3181 respondents with direct rural tourism experience in the Emilia-Romagna region (Italy), within Slow Food-based gastronomic settings and Albergo Diffuso accommodation systems. The findings indicate that value emerges through interconnected stages rather than isolated attributes. Gastronomic authenticity enhances spatial immersion, which strengthens sustainability perception and contributes to experiential enrichment—the strongest predictor of behavioral intention. The results further show that authenticity acquires behavioral relevance through successive stages involving immersion, sustainability perception, and experiential enrichment, without exerting a direct effect on behavior. The study advances a process-oriented understanding of tourism experience formation by explaining how authenticity becomes behaviorally relevant through successive experiential stages and offers practical implications for designing integrated and sustainable rural tourism systems.