• Home
  • Rural Tourism
  • OpenAccess
    • List of Articles Rural Tourism

      • Open Access Article

        1 - Analysis of Tourists’ Social Responsibility in Tourist Villages (Case study area: Tourist Villages of Khaf Township)
        Hamdollah  Sojasi Qeidari  
        Inappropriate behavior and odd recreational activities by tourists may have direct or indirect negative impact on the destination. Reducing the negative effects of tourism on the environment is a priority and main concern. Accordingly, a responsible environmental behavi More
        Inappropriate behavior and odd recreational activities by tourists may have direct or indirect negative impact on the destination. Reducing the negative effects of tourism on the environment is a priority and main concern. Accordingly, a responsible environmental behavior is important and necessary while achieving sustainable tourism development. This study was conducted in the spring of 2016 to analyze the social responsibility of rural tourists. The methodology was analytical-descriptive, using the library and field study (questionnaire). The study population comprised 228 tourists from 14 rural areas of Khaf. Data were collected using a stratified random sampling method with a questionnaire, which was based on the 5-fold elements of social responsibility in the literature. The reliability of the measurement tool was (0.869) based on Cronbach’s alpha coefficient. The results and findings of this study suggested the sample stayed higher than the favorable average number of 3 in terms of social responsibility component. In other words, tourists visiting these villages feel more responsible towards the different aspects of rural attractions. Manuscript profile
      • Open Access Article

        2 - An Analysis of Effective Factors in the Formation of Rural Tourism Brand in Kerman
        Aliakbar Anabestani Marziyeh Pourjopari Ali Khodadadi
        The mental image of target places is the most important factor that helps tourists determine their tourism destination, the lack of which may result in limited visits by tourists. Thus, paying attention to the formation of tourism brand is of great importance. Among dif More
        The mental image of target places is the most important factor that helps tourists determine their tourism destination, the lack of which may result in limited visits by tourists. Thus, paying attention to the formation of tourism brand is of great importance. Among different cities of Kerman Province, Kerman city is impoverished in terms of infrastructure, facilities, and tourism services. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the influential factors (environmental, social, and economic) in the formation of the tourism brand in rural areas of Kerman city. The required data were collected through document analysis and questionnaires. To this end, the main and complementary factors were set within the framework of two questionnaires concerning the host community (52 persons) and a paired comparison with experts (24 persons). Fuzzy and MABAC hierarchical models were also used to weigh the main factors and rank the villages. The study found that the environmental factor had the highest weight with a coefficient of 0.676, and economic and social factors had the lowest weight with a coefficient of 0.213 and 0.111, respectively, indicating that enough attention has no been paid to economic and social factors in the field of tourism branding. This study's findings could help resolve the major weaknesses found in the city and reinforce its strengths concerning the tourism brand. Manuscript profile
      • Open Access Article

        3 - Analyzing the Effect of Tourists’ Vandalistic Activities in Rural Areas on Local Community’s Tourist Reception and Tolerance: A Case Study of Neyshabour’s Tourist Villages
        Hamdollah  Sojasi Qeidari zahra rajaei Asma  Bazri Keshtan
        Apart from its positive effects, rural areas’ tourism development would exert some tangible and intangible negative influences on the host community. For instance, some tourists destroy and damage the rural areas’ infrastructure and tourist attractions in different ways More
        Apart from its positive effects, rural areas’ tourism development would exert some tangible and intangible negative influences on the host community. For instance, some tourists destroy and damage the rural areas’ infrastructure and tourist attractions in different ways such as engraving remembrance words, breaking down trees, etc., which, in the long term, may negatively affect the relationship between the host community and the visitors of the tourism destination villages, leading to a decrease in community’s tourism reception and social tolerance. Therefore, this study sought to analyze the relationship between tourists’ vandalistic activities in rural areas and the local community’s tourism reception and tolerance in the five tourism villages of Neyshabour. To this end, a descriptive-analytical methodology was applied, using library resources and surveys to collect the required data. The study’s population comprised 92 heads of families living in the studied villages. The results suggested that the most frequent vandalized activity conducted by tourists was polluting the village and its surroundings with wastes and the use of alcoholic drinks and drugs. Scores of the locals’ tourism reception and tolerance were, except one case (tolerance of social anomalies induced by tourist visits), reported above average. Moreover, the results of correlation analysis indicated a significant reverse correlation between tourism reception and the locals’ conflict with tourists. Also, the analysis of the effect of tourists’ vandalistic activities on the local community’s tourism reception and social tolerance showed that the significance level was less than 0.05, indicating that the regression model used for the analysis was significant for both dependent variables. Manuscript profile
      • Open Access Article

        4 - Designing a Model for The Development of Rural Entrepreneurship Ecosystem with Emphasis on Ecotourism Resorts in Tourist Villages of Khorasan Razavi Province
        Javad Sakhdari Jahangir Yadolahi farsi Malihe Shahriary
        Developing the rural entrepreneurship ecosystem could be considered an appropriate strategy to accelerate the development of rural areas and increase job opportunities. On the other hand, applying entrepreneurship to Iran’s ecotourism and rural tourism is considered a s More
        Developing the rural entrepreneurship ecosystem could be considered an appropriate strategy to accelerate the development of rural areas and increase job opportunities. On the other hand, applying entrepreneurship to Iran’s ecotourism and rural tourism is considered a supplement to agricultural activities to create favorable living conditions for the villagers and resolve the challenges existing in rural development. Therefore, this study sought to present a model for developing the rural entrepreneurship ecosystem in target tourism villages of Khorasan Razavi province using a qualitative research method with an applied descriptive-survey approach. To this end, the required data were collected via semi-structured interviews made with fifteen managers and board members of eco-tourist resorts. The data were then analyzed using the Grounded Theory method. Moreover, the validity and reliability of the model were measured via the Kappa index and confirmed by two researchers in the field of tourism and a few university professors. The study’s results suggested that the development of the ecosystem requires the decision maker to consider five aspects, including strategic orientation and effective leadership, identify appropriate sites’ locations, monitor the ecosystem’s development and provide its improvement mechanisms, set the demand-side policies, supply-side policies, and twelve sub-factors. Therefore, it could be argued that the proposed model may provide valuable insights for the development of an entrepreneurial ecosystem in rural areas with an emphasis on ecotourism opportunities. Manuscript profile