Rural tourism experience research: a bibliometric visualization review (1996-2021)

Purpose This study aims to identify the intellectual structures, current hotspots and research directions on rural tourism experience (RTE)-related fields from 1996 to 2021. Design/methodology/approach The authors collected 589 journal articles and reviews from the Web of Science Core Collection and Scopus database and analyzed them through VOSviewer and CiteSpace. Findings The results indicate a trend of gradual increase in RTE research, covering three main research themes. The most productive countries and institutions with RTE-related publications are mostly members of the European Union. However, the Asia-Pacific region is growing in RTE research and establishing influence. The author collaboration network and influential journals show the importance of the Malaysian authors and top travel journals. The discipline structure, critical articles and high-frequency keywords reflect the research hotspots and trends of RTE. Originality/value This study systematically reviews the RTE-related publications over the past 26 years. Accordingly, it can assist scholars gain a more comprehensive understanding of RTE research and acquire future research directions.