Strategy of Villages Tourism towards a World Class Destination

Tourism is one of the sectors in the worst condition as a result of the 2019-2022 Covid pandemic. The number of tourist visits to various regions in Indonesia, and even to various parts of the world, has decreased significantly. One of the strategies implemented to accelerate the recovery of world tourism is to build tourist villages, including building world-class tourist villages. The main objective of this research is to create a strategy to develop tourist villages into world-class destinations. The location of this research is in three tourist villages on Lombok Island, namely Kembang Kuning East Lombok which represents a natural mountain forest-based tourist village, Rembitan Central Lombok represents a cultural village, and Gili Gede Indah West Lombok which represents a beach-based tourist village. This research uses qualitative methods. Through a qualitative approach, information can be explored in more depth. The collected data was analysed using SWOT Analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) in order to build a strategy towards world-class tourist destinations. As a theoretical basis, James Coleman’s Rational Choice Theory is used. Through the perspective of Rational Choice Theory, it is assumed that people can make decisions based on a fixed, defined, consistent preference and behave instrumentally in achieving that preference. The output of the research is an effective strategy that can be implemented by tourist villages on Lombok Island to grow and develop into world-class tourist destinations in the future.