Tourism and Rural Development
Ruralareasaroundtheworldarefacingunprecedentedchallenges,andarechangingrapidly.In bothdevelopedanddevelopingcountries,theyarefacingseveralseriousproblems, notably:
•depopulation,particularlyofyoungerpeopleandthemore dynamicmembersofthecommu
nity,andadrifttotowns andcities;
•severepressureonagriculturalincomes,giventhecontroloverfoodproductionanddistribu- tion,whichisexercisedby multi-nationalfood-processingcorporationsandretailchains.
Acrosstheworldruraleconomiesandsocietiesarelookingincreasinglyfragilebecauseofawide rangeoffactorswhichvarybetweencountries.Inwestern Europe,thethreatsarecorningfrom reducedEuropeanUnion(EU)subsidiesforagriculture,whileinotherpartsoftheworldtheprob lemsarecomingfromhealthproblemssuchasacquiredimmunedeficiencysyndrome(AIDS)and naturaldisasterssuchasdroughts.
Thereisalsoagrowingfeelingthattheprocessofglobalizationisgoingtoputincreasingpres sureonruralfoodproducers.Interestinglymuchoftheoppositiontoglobalizationhascomefrom ruralinterestgroups,mostnotablythepeasantmovementinFrancewithitscharismaticleader
Bove,.
Asaresultofallthesethreats,thereisagreatinteresttodayinsustainableruraldevelopment, among governmentsandruralcommunities. Thereiscommonconsentthatthisrequiresaholistic viewthatintegratesall elementsoftheruraleconomytowardsacommonpurpose.Tourismis,of course,oneoftheseelements,butitisonlyone.
Unfortunately, inmanyplaces,tourismhasbeenseenasapanaceaforruralills,whereverweare intheworld.Thisignoresthefactthattourismissimply onepartoftheruralsystemwhichmust beinbalancewiththeother partsofthesystem,fromagriculturetoeducationandmanufacturing industrytohousing.
Nevertheless,intermsofruraldevelopment,tourismdoeshavemanyadvantages,includingthe following:
•itcanbedevelopedrelativelyquickly;
•thecapitalcostsareoften lessthanthoseofdevelopingnew businessesinotherindustries;
•tourismislesspollutingthanmostoftheother industries;
•tourismcanbringbenefitstoawidecross-section ofthelocalcommunity,ifproperlydeveloped;
•tourismcanhelpmaintaintheviabilityoffarms;
•ruraltourismcanprovidejobsforgroupsthatmayotherwisestruggletofindemploymentin ruralareas,suchaswomenandyoungpeople.
Ontheotherhand,tourismcanalsobringproblemstoruralareas suchasovercrowding,traffic,and rapid socialchangewhichisdifficulttoassimilateinwhatareoftenveryconservativecommunity cultures.
Farm•based tourism
Tourism which isnot farm based
Village-based tourism
Open countryside’ based tourism
Tourism where the attraction is traditional rural life
Tourismwhere the main appeal isnew attractions based in
rural areas
Passive relaxation tourism
Active, participatory tourism
Tourism development ledby localpeople
Tourism development driven bypeople from outside thecommunity
Tourism ledby public sector policy andfunding
Tourism ledbyprivate sector initiative and funding
Exhibit 34.1 Thenatureandscopeofrural tourism
Nevertheless,manyentrepreneursandgovernmentsaroundtheworld areinvestingheavilyin tourismaspartof,orasthefocusof,ruraldevelopmentstrategies.
Giventhisfact,itisunfortunatethatwecannotevenfindanagreeddefinitionforruraltourism. Itisknownbytermssuchasfarmtourism,agro-tourism, greentourism,andsoon.Thisundoubt
edly causesconfusion.Atthesame time,ruraltourismhas manyothercomplexitiesanditcanbe
seeninanumberofways,someofwhicharehighlightedinExhibit34.1.
Ofcourse,thepointsmadeinExhibit34.1arethepolarizedextremes;inreality,therearelotsof formsoftourismbetweenthese extremes.Itisvitaltorecognizethatwhilesomeruraltourismis designedtohelp achievebroaderruraldevelopment,itisoftenjustaprivateactivitytoearnmoney forthebenefit ofaprivateindividual..
Wewillnowlook.briefly, atsomeoftheformsofruraltourismdevelopmentthatarefound aroundtheworld,andlookatthemin termsofsustainableruraldevelopment.
FIanceisatruepioneerofmodem,ruraltourismanditsgovernmenthastakenaleadingroleinits development, withtheclearaimofusingtourismasaruraldevelopmenttool,ascanbeseenfrom thefollowingexamples:
•Gites,arederelictorunusedfarmbuildingsthatareconverted,withthehelp ofpublicsector grants,fortheuseoftourists.Createdbythegovernmentinthe 1950s,thisinitiativewas designedtoofferextraincometofarmerswhileprovidinglowcostruralholidaysforurban dwellers.Overtime,theconcept bas developedandtherearenowover45,000gitesandthere
-•2-
areeven specialist gites forhorse riding, children, fishermen, skiers, andnature walkers. For many farmers, giteletsnowrepresent asignificant proportion offarmincomes.
•Bienvenue alaFerme, anational campaign to encourage people tovisit farms, learn about
whattheyproduce andbuytheirproducts directly fromthefarmers. There arenowthousands offarms involved inthisscheme, withproducts ranging frommeattocheese, bread tohoney, andnuts topreserves. Theyhelpprovide farmers withsalesopportunities fortheirproducts at good prices without anylossofincome to ‘middlemen’ retailers.
•Fermes-Auberges, farms where guests canenjoy meals cooked bythefarmer’s family using local ingredients. Again theaimistoprovide extra income forfarmers aswellaspromoting traditional local gastronomy products.
•Marches du Pays are markets selling local food and drinkproducts.Theyactivelyfocus onlocallyproduceditemsandtendtotakeplaceintheholidayseasoninplaceswhichwill attracttourists.Thesemarkets,again,provideanopportunityforproducerstoselldirectlyto customers.
•LoisirsAccueilaregovernment-backedagenciesthatprovideinformationonruraltourism productsorservices,andpackageruralproductstogetherforthetourist.
•Themedtrailsdesignedtopromoteparticularaspectsofrurallifeinthearea,notablyfoodand
drinkandcrafts.Again,all these help topromotelocalproducts.
Inrecentyearstheterm’agro-tourism’ hasgrowninpopularity,inCyprus.However,itisoften hardtogettotheheartofwhatthisactuallymeans.Inmanybrochures,itsimplyseemstomean ruralself-cateringaccommodationandsmallhotelsinvillages.Severaloperatorshavealsodeveloped packageswhichtheydescribeas’agro-tourism’whichtheytrytodifferentiatefromcoastal mass markettourism.Thekeyelementsandethicsofthesepackagesareillustrated bythefollowing examplesfromtheCyprusAdventurewebsite:
Ourphilosophy-Analternativetomass-tourism
Bringstravellersintoclosecontactwiththeindigenouscultureand/ornaturalenvironment. Providesarangeofactivitiesotherthansimplyhangingaroundthehotelandlyingori.thebeach. Givesemphasistotheuniqueanddistinctlylocalelements,theculture/landscapeincludinghis
.tory,customs,architecture,food,music,language,handicrafts,flora,fauna,.e.tc. ”
Includessomeformofprofitsharingwithlocalvillagecommunities,suchasusingvillagestav- erns,locallyoperatedhotels/villageguesthouses,etc..
.Impacts•thepres-entculture’and Iandscapeaslittleaspossiblesothatthe.-cultural andnatural. resourcesare.completelyexhaustedintheshortterm.
~’.Here’is-achance totravelwell’off-the-beaten-tracktoexplorethefantastic’villages,unique
«u-lturillmonuments,andvirginlandscapesoftheEasternTroodosmountains,aregionnotoften
visitedby.averagetourists:Using.acombinationofsmallasphaltroads’aridnarrow(yetwell
maintained)dirttracks,wegobeyondtheboundsofnormalcoach’toursinordertobringyou through rivervalleysandsemi-forestedenvironments,wherethe’realCyprus’andthemagicof
.agro-tourismliewaiting.Thisisnomerejoyrideintothemountains,butauniquenature!
cultureencounter(hatisbothfunandinformative.
Emphasisisgiventoexploring’realCyprus’places,meeting’real’Cypriotpeople, andbav
.ing ‘real’CYI>rioetxperience.s.Andwespendasmuchtimeoutsidethevehicleaspossible.What’
canyouexpect? Spontaneity willrule theday,buthere’aresome specifics:
4X4transport fromhotel torivervalley/mountain hinterlands inourLand RoverDefenders:
visit toatleast threeoff-the-beaten-track traditional villages;
meet theMnkhtaris (Mayor) foramini-walking tourofhisvillage;
mingle with baby goats and lambs and wander througb orange groves topick your OW11stack fr?m thetree(November-April).
Source:cyprus-adventure.com
These packages, clearly findaready market andhelp develop rural tourism; they areanexample ofprivate sector initiatives.
Irelandhasbeenamajorplayerinruraltourismdevelopment inrecentyears,andhasmadeimaginative useofEuropean Union(EU)funding.TheIrishGovernment hasbeenparticularly keentousetourism tohelp reduce ruraldepopulation inthecountry.Anumber oflocalagencies hasbeen developed to co-ordinate ruraltourismdevelopment, oftenbasedontouristicratherthanadministrative regions.
Great usehasbeenmade oftheEULEADER programme. Forexample, inWest Cork, dozens ofprojects have been funded in recent years, largely todevelop therural tourism infrastructure, through initiatives suchasthefollowing:
•garden attractions,
•diving centres andequipment,
•self-catering accommodation development,
•caravan sitedevelopment,
•developing atourist information centre,
•restoring anoldwatermill,
•buying boats forrivercruising,
•building atourist hostel,
•awalking festival,
•disabled access foranglers,
•updating brochures,
•developing cycling routes,
•building anoutdoor pursuits centre,
•buying equipment forarural theatre,
•developing arural music festival.
Usually thesums ofmoney involved inthese projects aresmall scale and ismeant tobe’pump
priming’ tostimulate private sector investment.
Ireland hasrelied lessontraditional farm lifetoattract tourists buthasinstead focused onusing rural areas asabackdrop foractivities. Ithastargeted specialist niche markets with aninterest in these activities which range from golfing toangling, Irishmusic anddance tonatural history. Itis anattempt toprepare rurallreland forthefuturetourism market.
Currently there isadeep malaise inBritish agriculture andrural areas, largely duetocrises inthe food industry such as BSE and ‘foot and mouth’. As aresult, rural economic development has
become anevengreater priority forpublicpolicy, andtourism isseenasamainpart ofthispolicy. The ‘foot and mouth’ crisis showed just how important inthe UKrural economy, being worth around £3billion before thecrisis.
Traditionally, rural tourism in the UKhas been based 011picturesque villages, activities like horse riding, walking andcycling, and farm-based accommodation,
However, ruraJtourism hasnotbeenverywell-co-ordinated andtherelatively poorregulation of
British foodhasimpeded thegrowth ofrural tourism. Now,bigefforts arebeing made toimprove the image of British food, and restore customer confidence after BSE and ‘foot and mouth’, through farmers’ markets andlocal foodpromotion initiatives.
There arealsomany efforts being made touse fundedprojects tostimulate thegrowth ofinno
vative rural tourism development, ofwhich thefollowing areexamples.
I. EUObjective Onesuch astheCornwall and Isles ofScilly RuralTourism Improvement Fund.
Details ofthescheme areoutlined below:
The aim ofthe fund is toimprove the quality and range of facilities available forvisitors to
Cornwall andtheIslesofScilly
Toqualify foranObjective One grant under the Rural Tourism Improvement Fund,projects must:
– haveatleast5acres ofland(excluding dwellings, gardens, andlandscaped areassuchasland forpermanent caravan parks, etc.) inagriculture, grassland orwoodland setting, or
– haveanannual turnover fromagriculture of£1500ormore, or
– beamember ofCornish Farm Holidays oraCartwheel brand user.
Applications willalsobeconsidered fromnon-farming businesses thatwish todevelop aproj
ectpartnership with afarm thatsatisfies theabovecriteria.
Inexceptional circumstances itispossible toconsider atourism business thatcanshowalink
tofarming because 50percentofitspurchases come from Cornish farm-based businesses. The following funds areavailable:
(a) Business Plan Development Fund This grant is designed to help you put together an application forgrant, andisfunded atupto80percentofamaximum totalcost of£1500 (total possible grant =£1200). The grant isdiscretionary forprojects costing more than
£30,000 andashort application form canbeobtained from SouthWestTourism.
(b) Rural Tourism Improvement Fund A capital grant scheme tohelp improve the quality and range offacilities that will attract more visitors tofarm enterprises, especially outof season. Thetypes ofprojects thatareeligible willinclude:
– upgrading facilities,
– quality improvements,
– additional facilitiestoencourage greater tourism outside themain season,
– projects thatmeet aproven identified niche market (e.g. activity holidays).
New accommodation maybeeligible ifaclear casecanbemade bytheapplicant ofanew orspecialnichemarket, thatisbringing guests intothearea foranactivity orinterest, focus
ingonoutofseason bookings.
The programme covers 3 years, ending inApril 2004, and applications covering several
phases areencouraged.
Thegrant offere-dmaybeupto50percentofeligible capital coststoa maximum of£60,000. There isnomaximum orminimum capital cost.
(c) Rural Access Grant This fund covers improved access tothecountryside forvisitors to tourism businesses. Workcovered under thefund includes farm trails, access fordisabled people, small-scale environmental measures, and recycling, etc. Grant is provided for
items such asgates, stiles,waymarketing, hides, etc.,andisbased onstandard costswhere possible. . . .
Grantreceived maybeupto70 percentwithanupperlimitof£10.000(i.e,£7000ofgrant).
Yourcommitment
– Projects mustremain intheownership ofthegrantee’for5years after completion.
– Projects must comply withstatutory requirements such asBuilding Regulations. etc.
Source:www.swtourism.co.uk
2. EUInterreg illB which encourages co-operation between regions. For example, the Peak District National Parkputsforward aproposal foraruraltourism project thatlinkedagriculture, foodprocessing, culture, andtourism with partners inGermany, Sweden, andNorway.
3.Aresearch project runbytheUniversity ofStaffordshire, undertheRuralRecovery Programme intheWestMidlands, looked attheneeds andpotential ofsmall andmedium tourism-related
enterprises inStaffordshire.
The UKhasalsobeen a pioneer inthedevelopment ofconservation holidays where tourists payto work on rural conservation projects. These projects help toconserve and develop rural tourism resources such asfootpaths andwildlife habitats. .
Rural tourism isusually termed ‘agro-tourism’ inMalaysia andisoften based ontraditional agri cultural activities, particularly those which areplantation based. Adetailed range ofsuch planta tion visit experiences isoffered intheMelaka region, ascanbeseen from thefollowing extracts from anofficially sponsored government website:
. : .
Agro-tourism isafast-growing concept inthetourist industry andMelaka offers allitsvisitors
.awhole range ofactivities related totheagricultural andplantation sectors. Inspite oftherapid
:industrialization ofthestate.Melakans have alwaysfeltvery close to’Mother Earth’ asitwas therich.fertile soilthatprovided thesustenance throughout itscolourful history.
.Agro-tourism offersvisitors toMelaka: .
Visits to rubber plantations The rubber industry isclosely related tothehistoryofBritish
.colonization oftheMalayPeninsula. Visitors toMelaka canarrange forvisits torubber estates
.andlearn howrubber seeds areplanted, thelatextapped, andthenprocessed toproduce rubber
.,sheets.Therubber industry inMalaysia wastilebackbone ofthestateandnational economy for many years.
Visits to oil-palm pantations The oil-palm plantation hasreplaced therubber plantation as themost important plantation agricultural crop.Avisittoanoil-palm plantation willshow vis itorsbowpalm oilisextracted fromthefruitoftbe oil-palm tree.Malaysia isoneoftheleading producers ofpalm oilandMclaka hasafewlarge oil-palm estates. Palm oil,whichislowinfat, isused increasingly incooking, andin themanufacture ofawhole range ofedible. household,
‘andindu~trial products.
“‘Fru:t plantations Melaka hasmany fruit plantations. which produce awide varietyoftropi cal fruits Avisit to afruit plantation isamust toanyvisitor to Mclaka Visitors Will find the widevarietyoflocalfruitsmindboggling.Itmustbementioned thatsomeofthefruitsareseasonal;
.however agricultural research andimproved strains haveshortened tbeirseasonal cycle.Tasting
b–
thedurian, commonly referred toasthe’king offruits’ willbeatrulyunique experience forany’ visitors. Youwilleither loveitorhate it.Therefreshing juice from afreshly plucked fruit from
thecoconut palm offers atruly refreshing andinvigorating drink forthetired andweary trav
eller.Visits canalsobearranged tococa plantations andpaddy (rice) fields.Thevaststretches
ofpaddyfields-aseaofgreen-asfarastheeyecansee,thewaterbuffaloesrollingin themud
towardofftheheatofthe middaysunandthepeskyinsects,thetallcoconut.palms, gently swayingandreachingoutintothecloudlessbluesky,thequainttraditional.Malayhouses’on
stilts,andtheday’swashinghangingouttodryjustoutside,offeratrulypicturesqueimageof ruralMelakathatwillremain foreveretchedon themindoftheagro-tourist.. .
AyerKerch Recreational Forest AmustfornatureloversistheAyer KerohRecreational Forestwhichcomprisesofover500acresofgreenery.Thisforestoffersvisitorstheopportunity toexploreataleisurelypace,anuntouchedtropicalrainforest, richinacountlessvarietyof floraandfauna.Themanyvarietiesoftreesarelabelledwiththeirlocalandscientificnames. Itisanidealplaceforjungletrekking,hiking,jogging,andcycling.
Manyfacilitieshavebeensetup inAyerKerohandthesurroundingareasto.provide-foragro-. tourism-relatedactivities.Inaddition,alongthecoastalareaandtheislands offthe coist’of: Melaka,natureparkshavebeensetupandaccommodationisavailableforthosewhowantto spendanight,trulyclose tonature.. .
Source: www.malaccacom.net
Malaysiaisusingitsagriculturalpastasatouristattractionand,cleverly,relatingproductssuchas rubbertoitshistoryanditslinkstoBritainthroughtheEmpire. Thusthisagriculturalproduct becomespartoftheculturaltourismoffer.
SriLankaalsopromotesitsagricultureasatouristattractiononawebsiteabout’ecotourism’ as canbeseenfromthefollowingextracts:
Areyousomeonewhohas aninterestinAgricultureandAgro-Tourism?Ifsoyouhavecometo therightplace.Wecouldtakeyouthrough…
Paddycultivationsystems,whichhavebeendevelopedthrough 2500yearsofhistory.
-,Hugeancientirrigationaltanksthatwerebuiltbyourancestorsutilizing~lieij-unprecedented skillsandknowledgethatstuns themodemworld. ..
Provincesthatproducefinestspices.
Lushgreencarpet-likeplantationsthatproducethebestteaintheworld. Unbelievablevarietyoftropicalfruits.
Rubberandcoconutplantationsthatrunintomiles. Vegetableplotsanddairyfarmsinthecoolhills.
.Traditional’chena’cultivationsystems.
‘Organic andpesticide-freecultivations,andhomegardens.
Onspecialrequestwecouldguaranteea100percentorganicandpesticides-freefoodand,. beveragesduringyourentirestay. ..’. ….. .
•Accommodationwouldbearrangedatthesitesthemselvesin
•humblehousesoftraditionalpaddyfarmers;
•treetoptchena’ huts- where wild elephants cannot-reach you;
•Posh colonial planters bungalows, farmhouses in thecoolhillcountry;
•Campsites indairy farms, etc.
Inorder togetfirsthand experiences …
y~u’can tryyour hand atmilking early inthe morning, teaplucking with thetraditional ‘tea pluckers.rubber tapping under expert guidance, or even.touch work inthepaddy fields. You mayshar~theirmeals, learn their treasured systems, cQmingfrom generation togeneration.
Source: www.srilankaecotourism.com
Thelanguage andcontent suggests thatthesepackages areaimedatforeign tourists. Interestingly, they areaimed atboth agricultural professionals aswellas’agro-tourists’.
Tourism inKenya hasalwayslargely been rural, duetotheemphasis onsafaris andnature watch ing.However, thecountry isnow developing tours initsrural areas foragricultural professionals, asthefollowing example shows: .
Our company specializes inagro-tour packages’ forfarmers, researchers, students and manu facturers ofagricultural products, andservice providers planning tovisitEastAfrica. EastAfrica isaregion,with over80millionpeople andhighpotential foragriculture. Weareintouch with leading agricultural consultants. Government agricultural extension officers andfanners who canbe!h~good source.forbreeders andmanufacturers willing toopentrading intheregion.
‘;…Destinarion linkservices offerholidaypackages which arefulfilling inthatoneenjoys look
‘ingatwhat others aredoing outside ofones ownenvironment andshares ideas and expertise
..withnewpeople.
. Ourpackages aredesigned to stimulate business COntactbetween-suppliers and consumers
withintheagricultural indUStrythrough study tours..
Source:website.lineone.net
Asaleading agricultural producer, NewZealand hasalsodeveloped aformofruraltourism, based onoffering tours forprofessionals intheagricultural business. Brief details oftheactivities ofthis private sector company areoutlined below:
•Established in1984byagroup ofprofessional agriculturalists, Agritour has.a_vast’network of technical contacts throughout New Zealand andinthemajor agricultural nations oftheworld.
. Our clients include the World Bank, Agriculture Canada, the.Costa Rica Government,
•Chineseprovincial governments anduniversities, travel agents, tour operators, groups offarm-
•ers, and special interest groups from all over theworld: W~•also’arrange outbound tours for
,gro~ps ofNew Zealand farmers tostudy farming systems in.:other countries.
Soifyouwanttofindoutmore about NewZealand’sagriculture, experience ourfarming sys
tems andenjoymeeting realNew Zealanders, contact usnow;’
Source: www.agritour.co.nz
Even aquicksearchoftheInternetshowsawiderangeofruraltourismproductsfromaroundthe world,including:
•farmstaysinAustralia,
.’tours coffee-growingestatesin CostaRica,’
•ruralactivityvacationsiritheAndaluciaregionofSpain,
•aprojectthatpromotes90 organicfarmsinPoland.
Mostruraltourismwehavediscussedtodateisaboutinhabitedruralareas,butwemustalways remember that uninhabited wilderness areasareincreasinglybeingdevelopedfor adventure tourism,oftenbypeoplefromotherregionsorcountries.Thismaymakelittlecontributiontoa localeconomyorsociety,butitcanaffecttheenvironmentinwayswhichcanaffectthosewholive inruralareasinthelongerterm.
, Itistimeforustotrytodrawsomegenerallessonsandkeypointsfromthisfar-reachingand
wide-rangingdiscussion ofthehugesubjectoftourismandruraldevelopment.
1.CriticallyevaluatetheruraltourismpoliciesofFranceintermsofachievingruraldevelopment asawholeinthecountry.
2. Discussthewaysinwhichtourismdevelopmentin ruralareascouldbeinconflictwithrural economicandsocialdevelopment.’
3.Discusswhichformsoftourismaremostusefulindevelopingruralsocietiesandeconomiesin asustainableway.
4. Selectaruralareawithwhichyouarefamiliar.Foryourchosenlocation,youshoulddevelopa strategyforthedevelopment ofsustainableruraltourismthatwillcontributestronglytothe broadersocialandeconomicdevelopmentofthearea.
