The Role of Traditional Food Culture in Shaping Visitor Perceptions of Southern Sri Lanka

Abstract

The traditional food culture in Southern Sri Lanka was studied to determine its impact on visitor perceptions, cultural learning, emotional engagement and destination image formation. The research aimed to uncover the importance of traditional food to culture and to determine visitor experiences in order to assess its im- pact on visitor satisfaction and recommendations about the region. The research adopted a qualitative re- search approach. Two questionnaire Google Form questionnaires were administered to 30 international visitors and 30 local food stakeholders to obtain data for the research, which was later analyzed using thematic analysis with the support of the Taguette software. The data revealed that traditional food acted as one of the most prominent cultural lenses for visitors to view local culture, history, societal values and lifestyle. Key themes emerged in domains including cultural learning, narratives, authenticity, emotional response and sensory immersion. Visitors felt that their experience with food has improved their understanding of local culture, has enabled them to become more emotionally connected to local people, and has had a positive impact on their perceptions about Southern Sri Lanka. Insights from stakeholders highlighted various challenges including limited government support, limited industry cooperation and limited development support for promotional structures, in spite of great local efforts for heritage preservation. Overall, Food experiences play an important role in forming visitors’ perceptions, adding to their cultural experience and increasing their overall satisfaction with the destination, stressing the importance of culinary heritage in tourism development and building the regional identity.