The development of rural tourism

For the past several years, interest in rural tourism development has grown. And because of the renewed interest in America's rural communities, it should continue to grow. This nation has discovered that approximately 96 percent of its population lives on four percent of its land, which means that four percent of U.S. citizens are spread out over 96 percent of our landmass. As such, although there are many people who have always been interested in rural research, many of the problems associated with rural communities have become popular over the past few years and are being researched and discussed by both academics and community leaders.

One of the most popular issues is rural community development and the use of tourism as a tool for that development. There is a wealth of information about rural tourism including economic analysis of tourism, its impacts, and its affect on people. In addition, there has been a great deal published that concerns those various topics. In fact, in the September 1993 issue of Parks & Recreation, Brian Hill outlined the opportunities and challenges presented by rural tourism. Rural tourism has grown a great deal since his article, as has the research on the problems and challenges of tourism. However, many of the factors and challenges he talked about in 1993 are still prevalent today.

The intent of this article is to discuss a new issue (not discussed by Hill) in rural tourism development, that of the developmental process itself. One of the greatest challenges to rural tourism has actually been produced by the popularity and growth of tourism in rural communities. Because tourism is so popular, rural community leaders are racing to establish tourism in their communities, yet they often lack the understanding of the tourism development process that makes it difficult to generate tourism. If rural leaders do not understand how tourism begins or what processes are involved with tourism, they cannot possibly understand or deal with the resulting impacts of tourism in their community.

Rural Community Development Tool

Rural communities, just like urban areas, are constantly searching for economic development opportunities. Recently, as federal and state governments have curtailed funding to rural communities, economic development has become vitally important. As rural leaders search for economic development opportunities, one particular type of development that has become very attractive is tourism. Tourism is a viable method of development because it is economically feasible, relatively clean (does not rely on manufacturing), enhances the recreation opportunities in a community, and is a method of economic advancement and development that can be undertaken by the residents and leaders of a rural community.

Rural tourism development is attractive because of the perception that it is a clean and economical way to generate revenue. The economics of tourism are such that very often the revenue from tourism is generated by tourists (non-natives or non-residents of a community.) Visitors generate revenue as they spend money and pay tourism-dedicated taxes. For example, many communities have an innkeeper's tax (the most popular type of tourism-dedicated tax) on hotel and motel rooms. Typically an innkeeper's tax (bed tax) is incurred by visitors to the community, not residents of the community. Hence, the tax is popular because it generates revenue without taxing the residents, and the revenue is usually dedicated to tourism development. Thus, a community can often develop tourism without taxing the residents of the community, which makes tourism attractive not only to the leaders of the community but to the residents, as well. There is also a variety of other taxes that creates revenue from tourism; and most tax the visitors, not the residents. These include tourism-dedicated food and beverage tax and special licensing taxes.

The development of tourism in a rural community is perceived as a "dean" industry. For many years, rural communities were involved in a practice referred to as "buffalo hunting." Buffalo hunting involves rural leaders developing their communities by attracting companies and their manufacturing plants. Companies were offered tax concessions and cheap land as an attraction. However, the combination of tax concessions and the lack of a labor pool and community infrastructure often resulted in a net loss for a community and a very noisy, dirty manufacturing plant. Thus, attracting manufacturing and new business proved to be a difficult task, one that often affected a community's quality of life. Rural leaders discovered they could develop tourism without the tax concessions, the large labor pool, and the large, ugly manufacturing plant; and often, tourism development improves the quality of life. Therefore, the development of tourism is more effective -- and cleaner-- than attempting to attract manufacturing plants. Because of the opportunities presented by tourism development, there is no longer the need to scramble to bring a manufacturing company to a community.

In addition to creating jobs and revenue, rural tourism often increases the recreational opportunities in the community. For example, attractions are created or built (built tourism) to attract tourists, but at the same time, residents of the community benefit from using them. Sometimes the influx of tourists results in new recreational opportunities and improvements to parks, instances that are not often found in a rural community. Tourism also frequently enhances the spectrum of recreational opportunities in a rural community. For example, hotels or motels may build attractions for tourists that can also be used by the residents of the community.

Perhaps the most attractive thing about developing tourism in a rural community is that the leaders and residents of the community can foster pride and establish responsibility for the process of development. That is, the community can utilize local resources as well as local organizations to create tourism. Tourism is an opportunity that residents can create from within the community; it does not have to rely on out-of-state businesses or companies. New research has shown that this idea of development within the community has begun to take root. It is something that a rural community can do by itself with assistance from -- not reliance on -- outside sources.

Disadvantages to Rural Communities

Of course, rural tourism development does not come without a price. While it may improve revenue, quality of life, and recreational opportunities, there are reasons to be concerned about the social, cultural, and environmental impacts of tourism on a rural community. Many rural leaders and residents have discovered (often by surprise) that encouraging large numbers of visitors to come to a small community often creates problems.

The social and cultural problems can be numerous. Socially, the small rural community atmosphere dissipates quickly. Neighbors may not be able to stand at their white picket fence and chat with one another because there is a crowd of tourists on the street. In fact, it is not unusual for residents of a rural community that features popular tourism attractions to become unhappy when they find that at peak tourism times a simple five-minute trip to the post office can become a two-hour ordeal. In addition, residents of a rural community often do not have the same perception of tourism as does the tourist. Tourists flock to rural communities to soak up the town's "down to earth," friendly quality, while residents often view tourists as outsiders.

As tourism becomes popular, the culture of a rural community can also change rapidly. People tend to perceive a rural community as a place where children play on safe streets, where there is little or no crime, and where everyone welcomes you to their house. In many rural communities where tourism has developed, that perception is no longer true. The hidden side of rural tourism development (one not often discussed) includes crime and other serious societal problems that are imported to a rural community, problems that can radically alter a community's culture.

Research has also illustrated that rural tourism development can create its share of environmental problems. The allure of a rural community is often its quiet, unaffected beauty and "quaint" charm. The advent of tourism creates the need for infrastructure, which often results in litter, noise, and air pollution in addition to other environmental problems. For example, the influx of tourists to Brown County, Indiana, has granted Brown County State Park the dubious distinction of being one of the most visited state parks in the nation. As a result, the park, known for its unique environmental beauty, now often suffers from overcrowding and a fragile ecosystem. Raccoon State Recreation Area, located in west central Indiana, is a very popular recreation area, but because of overcrowding, it is often forced to close its gates to tourists.

Tourism development may also cause infrastructure-related problems for a community. The demand for amenities -- hotels, restaurants, and even public restrooms -- places a strain upon the infrastructure resources of a rural community. Rural communities often lack the resources to erect new buildings, create new sewer systems, or supply police and fire services. The influx of tourists forces a rural community to pave roads, provide better police and fire protection, keep the streets clean, and maintain a stressed infrastructure. In order to maintain such infrastructure, a small rural community needs money, a resource that is oftentimes unavailable to rural community governments.

Thus, rural tourism development, a popular method of economic development, one that has created a plethora of recreational opportunities in rural communities, has affected the very social fabric of communities, forcing them to change the way they do business and to begin to understand the tourist.

Rural Tourism Development

The development of tourism is often seen as a panacea for the ills of a rural community. Rural communities have resorted to tourism in an attempt to fend off a variety of economic problems. It is interesting that although the overall economy of the United States is doing well, the rural economy has been struggling for many years. The rural economy is much different from the general economy, so much so, that it is not unusual for rural economies to struggle while the nation's general economy flourishes.

The problems, too numerous to list, that exist in rural areas include the flight of the young from the community, persistent poverty of residents and government, a lack of employment opportunities, and an overall lack of a stable infrastructure. As stated earlier, many rural communities have established tourism to generate much needed revenue, which, in turn, translates into jobs to keep people in the community. Of course, it is not that simple. A community cannot simply decide to develop tourism, expecting that the next day all of its problems will be solved. Nor will tourism solve all of the rural problems in the country. However, as rural communities choose to develop tourism, rural leaders need to understand the tourism development process. In order for rural leaders to understand tourism development, there must first exist examples of success, resource guides, and trained qualified people to teach tourism development. Unfortunately, there are too many rural communities attempting to develop tourism that do not have the necessary means to carry out the process.

The process of developing tourism in a rural community has not been clearly defined. Tourism research has emphasized marketing and the investigation of impacts. There is, however, very little knowledge of the process of developing tourism in the United States. One prominent tourism researcher has pointed out that while we, as a profession, spend a lot of time researching the impacts and economics of tourism, we have largely ignored the development process. He goes on to suggest that it is difficult to understand tourism without first understanding the process that is involved in developing tourism.

Is it important to delineate the process of tourism development in a rural community? Will understanding the development process assist rural leaders in developing tourism, or give them the "right stuff' to develop tourism? It is difficult to answer these questions with any certainty, but understanding the process and the steps involved would surely help leaders -- especially those in a rural community -- to make informed decisions regarding tourism. As communities develop tourism, the same mistakes are committed again and again; and most communities are forced to begin the process from square one. There is virtually no communication regarding the process, nor is there general information available that allows rural leaders to emulate what has been successful in other communities.

Because research has not concentrated on the process, there is not a great deal known. Many believe that a rural community makes the decision to develop tourism at a town meeting, a handful of the residents agree, and the next day the community begins the tourism development process. Needless to say, this is not exactly how the process works.

There is some research that has modeled the tourism development process. Perhaps the most well-known model is the one of tourism development proposed by Butler in 1980. He proposed that tourism was created and moved through a cycle, much like the lifecycle of a new product on the market. Butler's model is often applied to tourism development, but there appears to be one shortcoming. His model does not take into account that the development of tourism in a rural community is much different from the development of tourism in an urban area. As stated earlier, rural communities, because of problems with the economy and the unique way that things are often done, are different. Thus, a generic model of tourism development may not necessarily apply to rural tourism development. As rural communities develop tourism, a process model that delineates the process exclusively for rural areas should be developed.

The Rural Tourism Development Process

Generally, from what little research is available, the process of rural tourism development usually begins when an individual or an organization believes that there is a resource in the community that would be of interest to tourists. That resource might be something natural, such as a park, or something constructed that might be unique to the area (for example, the covered bridges of Parke County, Indiana). This is considered the first stage of development.

The second stage involves "formalizing" the tourism process. Formal organizations would be started, local businesses would get involved, and the beginning of a plan to market tourism would start. During this stage, the individuals or groups involved often attempt to secure resources and look for funding to develop or enhance tourism attractions.

In the third stage, development has begun, and marketing is in full swing. Usually in a rural community, this is when you will see the development of special events and attractions. In addition, various tourism attractions will realize that instead of competing for the tourism dollar, they must work together to bring visitors to the community.

Finally, as tourism becomes a developed process, the community may establish a formal tourism organization, such as a convention and visitors bureau, which will usually implement tourism taxes. At this point, many communities have begun to work together to establish regional tourism, and tourism development becomes a centralized process in a rural community.

Tourism is usually developed in a rural community because of the influence of one person or a very small group of people. Contrary to certain research, it appears that rural tourism development is generally neither a community decision nor a decision that involves many people. It is a decision made by a person or persons who have the resources to provide for development. For example, in several rural communities, it is a wealthy entrepreneur who makes the decision. In many communities, it is an area native who knows the community well and has an interest in it. Surprisingly, tourism development is not a community decision and may not be supported by all residents of the community.

While the concept of tourism development is changing everywhere, the changes felt in rural communities have been numerous. In the past, the government was responsible for community development, but today, because of myriad problems in a rural community, the government has its hands full. The role of rural governments in the provision of infrastructure development is necessary, but tourism development often proceeds without the assistance of government. That is the new wave in rural development. And in rural tourism, a community must be able to develop tourism using resources from the government. Surprisingly, some research has shown that people who develop tourism don't desire this government involvement.

Conclusion

Of course, it is not possible to develop a standardized guide for the development of tourism in a rural community. When developing tourism, one cannot say that tourism development in a Nebraska community will mirror that of a community in Indiana. However, the different communities will develop tourism in similar ways, using similar methods. Thus, what is needed is a resource guide that proposes different methods of tourism development and provides tried and true scenarios. Rural communities should be given the opportunity to obtain the resources that will assist them in developing tourism. Tourism development tools include research, resource guides, how-to guides from successful communities, case studies, workshops, conferences, and training for rural leaders. The tourism development process must be delineated so that it can be illustrated and explained to rural community leaders. It is not possible to throw money at rural tourism and expect it to grow. Park, recreation, and tourism professionals must provide rural communities with the tools to develop tourism.

References

Butler, R.W. (1980). The concept of a tourist area cycle of evolution: Implications for management of resources. Canadian Geographer, 29, 5-12.

Hill, B. (1993, September). The future of rural tourism. Parks & Recreation, pp. 98-123.

Pearce, D. (1989). Tourist development (2nd ed.). New York: John Wiley & Sons.

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