The tourism industry has been gravely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. In this context, the purpose of this study was to explore residents’ support for sustainable tourism development in an integrative model that considered well-established factors and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Addressing various research gaps caused by the pandemic, this study aimed to examine a model based on eight hypotheses. Using the premises of a cross-sectional study, data was gathered from residents from Sibiu. Data analysis implied various steps to provide an accurate understanding of the hypotheses and the model was developed based on structural equation modeling. Considering the results of hypothesis testing, our study reconfirmed the applicability of social exchange theory in describing residents’ attitudes toward tourism development and positioned quality of life as an important predictor for this construct. Also, the outcomes highlighted a negative relationship between the host community’s perceptions of the coronavirus pandemic and their subsequent support for sustainable tourism development. Overall, the results focused on offering contributions for a better understanding of residents’ behavior and the influence of the COVID-19 outbreak on their support for sustainable tourism development. The conceptual and practical ramifications of the study were addressed in the article’s conclusion.

In the context of the activities specific to the "Sibiu European Gastronomic Region in the year of 2019" project, the sustainable rural development of the five micro regions (Mărginimea Sibiului, Olt Country, Hârtibaciului Valley, Târnavelor Valley and Secaşelor Land), aims to bring a new concept of integrated and systemic approach to the role of promoting traditional activities in which gastronomy plays an important role. Gastronomic touristic products incorporate values of environment, landscape, parts of local culture, traditions, local cuisine, traditional costumes, local food and rituals, associated with gastronomic experiencethe way the edibles are served and presented, as well as ingredients, preparation methods. Identifying the culinary destination is one of the challenges of creating touristic products, in which an important role goes to guesthouses. The aim of the paper is to analyze the preferences of the tourists for practicing gastronomic tourism and the involvement of the rural tourism operators in the project, taking into account the types of preferred events. In this regard, it has been elaborated a questionnaire for the tourists accommodated in the rural and agro-touristic guesthouses from two micro regions representative of the Sibiu County, respectively Hârtibaciului Valley and Mărginimea Sibiului. Also, there have been held discussions with the guesthouse's administrators, who are actively implicated in the diversification of the mass tourist services supply by designing new tourist products, which incorporate traditional reinterpreted recipes, accompanied by a story of the place and source of raw material.

This paper provides an overview of the possibilities of improving the quality of tourism services of the ”eco-guesthouses” from Marginimea Sibiului in the context where the international studies indicate that lately tourists have become more experienced and expect good quality products in chosen holiday destinations. Currently, the international market of ecotourism has developed with 10-12% annually, having the fastest growth in the world tourism sector and tending to become an independent market segment, under the influence of factors such as: travelers prefer to choose educational holidays, their desire to escape to nature and spend quality time with friends or family, etc. In these circumstances, the quality is important for both tourists and eco-guesthouses, as it can contribute to making better products at lower costs, ensuring continuous customer orientation and thus controlling and shaping their preferences and expectations.

This paper provides an overview of the possibilities of improving the quality of tourism services of the “eco-guesthouses” from Mărginimea Sibiului in the context where the international studies indicate that lately tourists have become more experienced and expect good quality products in chosen holiday destinations. Currently, the international market of ecotourism has developed with 10-12% annually, having the fastest growth in the world tourism sector and tending to become an independent market segment, under the influence of factors such as: travelers prefer to choose educational holidays, their desire to escape to nature and spend quality time with friends or family, etc. In these circumstances, the quality is important for both tourists and eco-guesthouses, as it can contribute to making better products at lower costs, ensuring continuous customer orientation and thus controlling and shaping their preferences and expectations.