Typology of Agritourism

16 Typology of Agritourism

Agritourism, also known as agricultural tourism, is a type of tourism that involves visiting farms or rural areas to participate in activities such as crop harvesting, animal feeding, and wine tasting. Agritourism has become an increasingly popular type of tourism in recent years, particularly among urban dwellers seeking to reconnect with nature and experience rural lifestyles. However, agritourism is a diverse field that encompasses a wide range of activities and business models, and as such, a typology of agritourism has been proposed to classify and analyse the different forms of agritourism.

According to Getz and Carlsen, the typology of agritourism can be divided into four main categories: on-farm direct sales, agricultural entertainment, educational agritourism, and rural tourism. On-farm direct sales involve selling agricultural products such as fruits, vegetables, and dairy products directly to consumers on the farm. Agricultural entertainment, on the other hand, involves providing recreational activities such as hayrides, corn mazes, and petting zoos on the farm. Educational agritourism includes activities such as farm tours, cooking classes, and workshops that provide visitors with an educational experience related to farming and agriculture. Finally, rural tourism encompasses a wide range of tourism activities that take place in rural areas, such as hiking, camping, and hunting.

In summary, the typology of agritourism provides a useful framework for understanding the different forms of agritourism and their underlying business models. By analysing and classifying agritourism activities, policymakers and industry stakeholders can better understand the unique challenges and opportunities associated with each type of agritourism, and develop targeted strategies to support the growth and development of this important sector.

In this guideline, the general typology of agritourism is presented. It’s beneficial for the mentors because it contains a general introduction to the topic of agritourism with an emphasis on the Czech Republic.

2. Key Elements

2.1. Agritourism – General Information

Agritourism is a term used for activities connected with tourism and agriculture. Usually, agritourism is considered a part of rural tourism, which is part of tourism in general. The beginning of agritourism in Europe is dated to the first half of the 20th Century when the first farms offering accommodation or other leisure activities emerged in Western Europe. The rise of agritourism in southern Europe is dated to the eighties and in the former eastern bloc, agritourism emerges in the nineties. Still, agritourism is the most developed in Alpine countries like Austria, Switzerland or Germany, and on the other hand in the Czech Republic and Poland offering accommodation and other leisure activities is mainly the minor activity of farmers. This means that in Europe agritourism is connected mainly with periphery regions with natural beauty and extensive agriculture, therefore mountains and hilly areas. These areas are also often areas under some level of natural protection.

In 2020 in agritourism Czechia was practiced by 2.5 % of total farms, which is similar to the share of farms with forestry activities. Unlike Austria agritourism in the Czech Republic isn’t located in areas with a higher level of natural protection (table 1). But on the other hand, in the Czech Republic agritourism is concentrated in areas generally favored by tourism. It can be seen in a comparison of the Karlovarský and Jihočeský regions (regions with a higher share of farms with tourism activity and popular by tourists) and Ústecký and Pardubický region (table 1).

2.2. Agritourism – Main Types

According to data from CZSO agritourism can be divided into many ways. One possibility is to define, how much percent of farmers’ income comes from agricultural activity or activities connected with tourism. Another way is to define, how much are agricultural activities connected or disconnected from farming activities. Tourists can just stay at the buildings at the farm, they can consume food produced on the farm or tourists can directly join the agricultural activities by helping at the farm. Also, agritourism can be divided according to the type of leisure activity. There can be farms offering accommodation, farms offering food and catering services, or farms offering activities with animals like horse riding.

Table 1: Comparison of regions of the Czech Republic from the view of agritourism, areas under natural protection and tourism:

Region	Farms offering activities connected with tourism	Share of farms offering activities connected with tourism (in % from total farms)	Share of the region in landscape-protected areas or national parks (in %)	Number of hosts in official accommodations/one inhabitant
Praha + Středočeský	49	1.6	10.5	3.1
Jihočeský	51	2.0	19.8	2.3
Plzeňský	29	1.6	16.2	1.1
Karlovarský	14	3.3	18.8	3.2
Ústecký	10	0.8	26.4	0.6
Liberecký	5	0.5	34.1	2.0
Královéhradecký	35	2.2	18.9	2.1
Pardubický	12	0.9	10.1	0.9
Vysočina	20	0.9	9.5	1.0
Jihomoravský	52	1.6	5.5	1.4
Olomoucký	31	2.3	10.6	0.9
Zlínský	19	1.2	28.9	1.2
Moravskoslezský	22	1.3	16.9	0.7

Source: CZSO (2019) and CZSO (2017).

3. Example

Basařovi Farm – a farm located in Northern Bohemia in the Czech Republic. It is in a hilly area close to the Krkonoše Mountains. This family has more than 200 cattle, and biogas stations and they offer accommodation. They sell the meat from their animals directly to the consumers. Their pension uses two separate buildings where a total of 26 persons can stay. In the area of the accommodation, there is a minizoo with different animals. Therefore, this accommodation is suitable mostly for families with children.

4. Benefits and Potential Impact

The benefits and impact you might have from the guideline implementation are:

For the mentor	For the mentee
Introduction to the concept	Be able to recognize what agritourism is
Another point of view on agritourism	Consider what type of agritourism would be the best to choose for the mentee

5. Self-evaluation Questionnaire

The Farms’ Charm project aims to develop learning materials to educate small and medium-sized farmers in possible ways of starting their agritourism activities which will help them not only diversify their incomes but also promote their farm products directly to consumers. All that while reviving the rural areas and local communities and promoting a sustainable way of tourism which is in line with the tendencies of slowing down and staying longer at one area.

Contact Info

info@farmscharm.com

This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. The content of this website reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

Project number: 2022-1-CZ01-KA220-ADU-000089506

Cookies policy

16