Developing a Rural Tourism Destination Brand Framework from the Perspective of a Relationship-Based Approach

The aim of this paper is to develop a destination brand framework for rural tourism destination. Bario a rural community in Sarawak (Borneo) in Malaysia was chosen as a study context. The choice of Bario over other pre-selected rural destinations is because of its unique remote destination. The primary data collection method for this paper was the in-depth interview with 48 participants; this was supplemented by participant observation and documentary evidence. From the perspective of relationship-based approach adopted in this paper, the findings out-line three components for a theoretical construction of rural tourism destination brand framework that comprise tourism destination appeals, branding strategies, and stakeholders ’ roles. Findings also indicate that the development of rural tourism destination brand should be from the bottom-up, where community-driven strategies can be most effectively delegated to the local leadership system and community ’ s association. Implications for practice and host community well-being are discussed in detail.