DETUROPE - The Central European Journal of Regional Development and Tourism 2025, 17(2):120-136

Rural Guesthouse Attractiveness in Croatia: A Pilot Analysis Using a Multicriteria Method

Lari Hadelana, Magdalena Zrakić Sušaca, Ana Crnčanb, Mateja Jež Rogeljaa
a University of Zagreb Faculty of Agriculture, Svetosimunska cesta 25, Zagreb 10000, Croatia
b Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek Faculty of Agrobiotechnical Sciences, Vladimira Preloga 1, Osijek 31000

The Croatian tourism sector is strongly oriented towards the coastal regions and follows the proven model of "sun and sea". Rural guesthouses, as a new type of tourism offer run by family farms, are a promising way to diversify the Croatian tourism portfolio and revitalize the rural economy. This study presents a methodological framework for the evaluation of rural guesthouses using a multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) approach based on the assessments of eight rural tourism experts on five main criteria for guesthouse attractiveness and 21 sub-criteria. Despite the assumption that an affordable accommodation price is the most important factor for the attractiveness of a rural guesthouse, it only ranks third in the aggregated expert ratings, behind the location and the facility's equipment. The results of this study offer practical value to researchers, managers and policy makers by providing a structured and quantifiable framework for assessing the attractiveness of rural guesthouses. Rather than relying on generic lists of attractiveness factors, the approach identifies and prioritizes key elements that could enhance a guesthouse’s appeal to tourists.

Keywords: rural tourism, guesthouse, multicriteria decision making, Croatia

Received: September 5, 2025; Revised: December 13, 2025; Accepted: December 23, 2025; Published: December 25, 2025  Show citation

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Hadelan, L., Zrakić Sušac, M., Crnčan, A., & Jež Rogelja, M. (2025). Rural Guesthouse Attractiveness in Croatia: A Pilot Analysis Using a Multicriteria Method. DETUROPE - The Central European Journal of Regional Development and Tourism, 17(2), 120-136
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