The role of perceived authenticity as the determinant to revisit heritage tourism destination in Penang

The recent growth in the heritage tourism has led to a renewed interest in the study of revisit intention. Heritage tourism is one of the fastest-growing segments that can be classified as the peculiar fraction in tourism industry. The popularity of heritage tourism escalates as the segment continues to provide diversity and variation of cultural and heritage elements that offer more authentic experience to the visitors. Cultural and heritage elements and activities often portrayed the authenticity of a destination. As a nation, Malaysia is often cited as among the main destinations in Asia that flourishes with culture and heritage elements. However, it is afraid that the heritage tourism product in Malaysia is losing the touch of authenticity and originality due to mass tourism. This has led to major concern on the sustainability of heritage tourism market. Significantly, the issue of authenticity and originality are the foremost to determine the magnitude of the success of heritage tourism. Therefore, the study has two main objectives: (1) to examine the relationship of perceived authenticity and satisfaction to revisit Penang, (2) to analyze the role of satisfaction as mediation in the relationship of perceived authenticity in revisiting Penang.