A Sustainable Tourism Destination Framework for Tourism and Hospitality Education in the Bicol Region, Philippines

Abstract

This study aimed to develop a Sustainable Tourism Destination Framework for Tourism and Hospitality Education in the Bicol Region, Philippines, by examining tourists' perceptions of destination attributes, tourism service quality, and the factors influencing sustainable tourism development. Using a quantitative descriptive research design, data were collected from 385 tourists through a structured questionnaire. The study assessed destination attributes, tourism service quality, and the economic, sociocultural, political, legal, and environmental factors influencing tourism in the region. Descriptive statistics, comparative analyses, and relationship analyses were employed to analyze the data. The findings revealed favorable tourist perceptions of destination safety, cleanliness, accessibility of information, infrastructure, pricing, tourism facilities, attractions, and the social environment. Tourism service quality was likewise evaluated positively across assurance, responsiveness, reliability, tangibles, empathy, destination image, and tourist loyalty. Significant relationships were identified among destination attributes, influencing factors, and tourism service quality, highlighting their collective contribution to sustainable destination development. Based on these findings, a Sustainable Tourism Destination Framework was developed to serve as a strategic reference for policymakers, tourism planners, local government units, destination managers, and tourism stakeholders while providing an evidence-based framework that can support curriculum enrichment, destination-based learning, and sustainability education in tourism and hospitality programs in higher education institutions.