Introduction to rural tourism

Spanish scholar Rosa Mar?a Yagu¨e Perales (2001) divided rural tourism into two types: traditional rural tourism (Homecoming or Traditional Rural Tourism) and modern rural tourism (Modern Rural Tourism).

Traditional rural tourism appeared after the industrial revolution, mainly in the form of "returning to hometown" for vacation by some urban residents from rural areas. Although traditional rural tourism will have some valuable economic impacts on the local area and increase opportunities for urban-rural exchanges, it is very different from modern rural tourism, mainly reflected in the following: traditional rural tourism activities are mainly carried out during holidays; there is no effective It does not promote local economic development; it does not increase local employment opportunities and improve the local financial environment. In fact, traditional rural tourism is widespread in both developed and developing countries around the world. In China, this traditional rural tourism is often classified as family-visiting tourism.

Modern rural tourism is a new tourism model that appeared in rural areas in the 1980s. It has developed rapidly especially after the 1990s. The motivations of tourists are obviously different from the traditional tourism motivation of returning to their hometowns. tourist. The main characteristics of modern rural tourism are as follows: travel time is not limited to holidays; modern rural tourists make full use of the beautiful landscape, natural environment, architecture, culture and other resources in rural areas; the contribution of modern rural tourism to the rural economy is not only It increases local fiscal revenue, creates local employment opportunities, and injects new vitality into the local weak traditional economy

Modern rural tourism has a positive impact on rural economic development. With the rapid increase in tourists with modern characteristics, modern rural tourism has become an effective means of developing rural economy. Therefore, it is very necessary to distinguish the difference between this kind of "hometown" tourism or traditional rural tourism and modern rural tourism. The rural tourism we are talking about refers to modern rural tourism. Rural tourism uses rural natural and cultural objects as tourist attractions, relies on the beautiful landscape, natural environment, architecture, culture and other resources in rural areas to combine traditional rural leisure travel and agricultural experience. On the basis of tourism, we will expand and develop emerging tourism methods such as conference vacation, leisure and entertainment projects.

There is no completely unified definition of rural tourism in domestic and foreign academic circles. The main views are as follows:

Spanish scholars Gilbert and Tung (1990) believe that: Rural tourism is A form of tourism in which farmers provide tourists with food, accommodation and other conditions, allowing them to engage in various leisure activities in typical rural environments such as farms and pastures.

The World Council for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD, 1994, P.15) defines it as: tourism carried out in rural areas, rural flavor (rurality) is the center and unique selling point of rural tourism

< p>Arie Reichel and Oded Lowengart of Israel and Ady Milman of the United States (1999) said succinctly: Rural tourism is tourism located in rural areas. It has the characteristics of rural areas, such as the small scale of tourism enterprises, the open area and the characteristics of sustainable development.

Bramwell and Lane (1994) in the United Kingdom believe that rural tourism is not only an agricultural-based tourism activity, but a multi-level tourism activity. In addition to agricultural-based holiday tourism, it also includes special interests. Nature tourism, ecotourism, activities such as walking, mountain climbing and horseback riding on holidays, adventure, sports and health tourism, hunting and fishing, educational tourism, cultural and traditional tourism, and folk tourism activities in some regions.

There are many definitions of rural tourism in China. He Jingming and Li Lihua believe that rural tourism in a narrow sense refers to tourism activities in rural areas that use rural natural and cultural objects as tourist attractions. The concept of rural tourism includes two aspects: one is that it occurs in rural areas, and the other is that rurality is used as a tourist attraction. Both are indispensable.