Perceptions of authenticity in a Malaysian homestay – A narrative analysis

• Participants' narratives highlight that the homestay is perceived as authentic.
• Guests refer to perceptions of ‘objective’ and ‘existential’ authenticity.
• Guests enjoy ‘authenticity’ only for short periods of time.

Despite the plethora of studies about authenticity in tourism and homestays in Malaysia, little is known about tourists' perceptions of authenticity in the Malaysian homestay experience. This paper attempts to address this gap by focussing on guests' narratives of authenticity in a Malaysian homestay experience. As narratives can be the object and the method of inquiry, this study employs narrative analysis to deconstruct and analyse tourists' narratives. Grounded on an interpretivist frame of inquiry, the empirical material is obtained from internet blogs and on-line interviews. Overall, the analysis of narratives suggests that the whole experience is in general described as ‘authentic’ by the guests. However, the findings also show that ‘authenticity-triggering’ experiences should not last for long periods of time as guests seem to be keen to compromise their comforts only for short periods of time.