EVALUATING SUSTAINABLE PRACTICES IN RURAL TOURIST HOUSEHOLDS: A STUDY FROM THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA

Eighth International Scientific Conference Contemporary Issues in Economics, Business and Management [EBM 2024], [pp. 231-238]

AUTHOR(S) / АУТОР(И): Jovana Davidović , Danijela Pantović , Tijana Babović

Download Full Pdf   

DOI: 10.46793/EBM24.231D

ABSTRACT / САЖЕТАК:

Agritourism plays a vital role in promoting sustainable development in rural regions. The application of sustainable practices in agritourism increases its overall sustainability. Through this approach, this type of tourism is positioned as a key strategy for improving rural development, offering a stable and sustainable model for the future. An increasing number of studies focus on this topic, emphasizing rural tourism and agritourism as primary catalysts for the sustainable development of rural areas. In order to examine the state of sustainable practices in the rural areas of the Republic of Serbia, a survey was conducted that included 73 rural tourist households. The research deals with the ecological, social, and economic components of these households, and the results are presented through descriptive statistics. While the findings are predominantly positive, indicating respondent satisfaction with the performance of the identified sustainable components, there is still a need for improvement and promotion of sustainable development within this sector of rural tourism. Greater emphasis must be placed on the ecological component, considering that the social and economic components are more represented in the business of these households. The findings of this study contribute to the existing literature on agritourism by promoting the need for its sustainable growth.

KEYWORDS / КЉУЧНЕ РЕЧИ:

Sustainability, Rural development, Rural community, Agritourism, Rural tourist households

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT / ПРОЈЕКАТ:

This research is supported by the Ministry of Science, Technological Development and Innovation of the Republic of Serbia by the Decision on the scientific research funding for teaching staff and researchers at the accredited higher education institutions in 2024 (No. 451- 03-65/2024-03/200375 of February 5, 2024).

REFERENCES / ЛИТЕРАТУРА:

  • Adamov, T., Ciolac, R., Iancu, T., Brad, I., Peț, E., Popescu, G., & Șmuleac, L. (2020). Sustainability of agritourism activity. Initiatives and challenges in Romanian mountain rural regions. Sustainability, 12(6), 2502.  https://doi.org/10.3390/su12062502
  • Ammirato, S., Felicetti, A. M., Raso, C., Pansera, B. A., & Violi, A. (2020). Agritourism and sustainability: What we can learn from a systematic literature review. Sustainability, 12(22), 9575. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12229575
  • Bramwell, B., & Lane, B. (2014). The “critical turn” and its implications for sustainable tourism research. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 22(1), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1080/09669582.2013.855223 
  • Dimitrijević, M., Ristić, L., & Bošković, N. (2022). Rural tourism as a driver of the economic and rural development in the Republic of Serbia. Hotel and Tourism management, 10(1), 79–90. http://dx.doi.org/10.5937/menhottur2201079D
  • Franić, R., & Cunj, L. (2007). Društveno-gospodarski preduvjeti razvitka agroturizma u Zagrebačkoj županiji. Agronomski glasnik, 69(5), 381–400.
  • Kernel, P. (2005). Creating and implementing a model for sustainable development in tourism enterprises. Journal of Cleaner Production, 13(2), 151–164. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2003.12.023
  • Kothari, H., & Perwej, A. (2021). Agro tourism: A way of sustainable development. Wesleyan Journal of Research, 13(68), 2–10.
  • Leonte, E., Chiran, A., & Miron, P. (2016). Implementing agritourism marketing strategy as tools for the efficiency and sustainable development of rural tourism. Environmental
  • Engineering & Management Journal, 15(12), 2663–2669. http://dx.doi.org/10.30638/eemj.2016.292
  • Maria-Irina, A., (2017). Ecotourism, agro-tourism and rural tourism in the European Union. Cactus Tourism Journal, 15(2), 6–14.
  • Melović, M., (2022). Agritourism in Montenegro – Empirical research in the fuction of strategic development. Hotel and Tourism Management, 10(1), 9–24. http://dx.doi.org/10.5937/menhottur2201009M
  • Muresan, I. C., Oroian, C. F., Harun, R., Arion, F. H., Porutiu, A., Chiciudean, G. O., Todea, A., & Lile, R. (2016). Local residents’ attitude toward sustainable rural tourism development. Sustainability, 8(1), 100. https://doi.org/10.3390/su8010100
  • Nastić, S., Vujko, A., & Dragosavac, M. (2024). Does economic indicators of sustainable tourism present a promising trend of rural destination development? Attitudes of Vojvodina rural residents. Economics of Agriculture, 71(1), 275–291. https://doi.org/10.59267/ekoPolj2401275N
  • Nistoreanu, P. (2006). Ecoturism si turism rural. 3rd ed. Bucharest: Editura ASE.
  • Njegovan, Z. (2016). Ekonomika turizma i seoskog turizma. Poljoprivredni fakultet, Novi Sad.
  • Petrović, M. D. (2014). Kvalitet agroturizma Vojvodine i njegov uticaj na stavove lokalnog stanovništva (Doctoral dissertation, Ph. D. thesis–in Serbian). University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Sciences, Department of Geography, Tourism and Hotel Management, Novi Sad, Serbia).
  • Petrović, T., & Miletić, R., (2023). Održivi razvoj turizma kao faktor razvoja i konkurentnosti ruralne destinacije. Međunarodna konferencija – Jahorinski poslovni forum: Turizam u funkciji domaćeg poljoprivredno – prehrambenog sektora, 26-28 april, Jahorina, Republika Srpska, 448–455.
  • Sims, R. (2009). Food, place and authenticity: local food and the sustainable tourism experience. Journal of sustainable tourism, 17 (3), 321–336. https://doi.org/10.1080/09669580802359293
  • Sumantra, I. K., Yuesti, A., & Sudiana, A. A. (2017). Development of agrotourism to support community-based tourism toward sustainable agriculture. Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences, 11(13), 93–99.
  • Torres-Sovero, C., González, J. A., Martín-López, B., & Kirkby, C. A. (2012). Social- ecological factors influencing tourist satisfaction in three ecotourism lodges in the southeastern Peruvian Amazon. Tourism Management, 33(3), 545–552. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2011.06.008
  • Yazdanifard, R., & Mercy, I. E. (2011). The impact of green marketing on customer satisfaction and environmental safety. International Conference on Computer Communication and Management, 5(1), 637–641.
  • Yusuf, E. S., & Wulandari, S. (2023). Agritourism development: Designing an effective model for sustainable growth. BIO Web of Conferences, 69, p. 04023. http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/bioconf/20236904023