1

2 Review

3 Agritourism for Rural Development in Italy,

4 Evolution, Situation and Perspectives
5
6 Fabio Maria Santucci1*
7
1
8 Department of Economics and Food Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Perugia
9
10
11
12 .
13 ABSTRACT
This review paper deals with agritourism in Italy and it is based on several recent studies,
unpublished papers and statistics. Italy has a long and diversified experience in the
agritourism sector, which since 1985 has been formally recognized with a national
legislation, accompanied by regional laws. Agritourism has represented one of the main
drivers for on farm diversification and has contributed to the economic development and
wellbeing of rural areas, by attracting millions of tourists into parts of the country which were
ignored even by Italians.
The offer is very diverse, ranging from small and simple family farms to luxurious estates,
with services of the highest quality. In 2010, with 19,973 operators and about 200,000 beds
available, there were more than two million guests, out of which 50% foreigners, who spent
on the farm an average of 4.5 nights. Agritourism operators have net farm incomes and
returns to family labour higher than the normal farmers, but some worries are there, because
the utilization rate of the rooms – the major indicator for the tourism industry, in 2011 and
2012 was the lowest when compared to other categories of operators. Suggestions are
consequently advanced, such as more professionalism, better market segmentation,
diversified and integrated offers through travel operators, and categorization of the
agrotourism farms, based on quality parameters
14
15 Keywords: Multifunctionality; Rural Employment; Marketing; Regional Marketing; Rural
16 Development.
17
18 1. INTRODUCTION
19
20 The Italian tourism industry employs, directly and indirectly, about 2.5 million people and
21 provides about 4 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product. When all linked activities are
22 computed, its relevance rises to 9.4 percent of GDP. In 2010, foreign tourists have brought to
23 Italy about 29 billion euros. These figures position Italy at the fifth place, after France, USA,
24 China and Spain, but there are wide margins for improvement [1]. Within the tourism
25 industry, in the last 30 years the phenomenon of agritourism has represented the revival of
26 ancient traditions, coupled with integrated rural development. Within the more general
27 definition of multifunctionality [2] [3], agritourism represents one of the major sources of
28 income. It has also allowed to diversify the tourist offer and to attract visitors out of the most
29 famous destinations. Wine and food tourism is enormously important (Osservatorio
30 Nazionale sul Turismo, Rapporto sul turismo 2011, unpublished document, Rome) and has
31 represented in both 2010 and 2011 about 5% of total tourist flow, with a higher relevance for
32 Foreigners (6.9% in 2011) than for Italians (4.2%), but only 11.7% overnight in a farm.
33

* Tel.: +390755856267; fax: +390755857146.

E-mail address: [email protected]
34 The history of on farm hospitality goes back through the centuries, when travellers and
35 pilgrims had to ask for food and shelter along the routes, whenever a monastery, a
36 guesthouse or a trading post were not available. More recently, in XIX century, the German
37 cultural and philosophical movement called “Romanticism” invited its followers to leave the
38 towns and discover again the nature. Walking through fields and woods, as well as climbing
39 on mountains and sunbathing near the seaside became fashionable for the cultural elites.
40 This demand for nature motivated rich entrepreneurs to build luxurious hotels in the Swiss,
41 Austrian and Italian Alps or along the coast in the French Riviera, many of which are still in
42 operation, and also favoured some clever farmers and landlords, who begun to diversify their
43 activities, by opening guesthouses and small restaurants to accommodate both less
44 demanding guests and very rich clients, searching for a touch of “rural authenticity”
45
46 It is however only in the last 30 years, with the very recent explosion of mass tourism, that
47 agritourism has become a mass phenomenon, involving thousands of farms and moving
48 millions of tourists. Foreign and Italian tourists may now enjoy a day of cultural visits to the
49 abundant cultural heritage and the next day can move to a nearby rural area for a food and
50 wine tasting, or can spend a full week on a farm, relaxing near the swimming pool or
51 engaging into some outdoor sporting activity. Agritourism has exploded everywhere in the
52 world [4] and it represents a viable source of incomes for smallholders and estate owners in
53 many countries, in all continents.
54
55
56 2. METHODOLOGY
57
58 This paper is based on both a literature survey and own researches and experiences by the
59 Author. The desk work has been performed during the months July – December 2012, by
60 consulting published articles and books as well as unpublished documents, produced by
61 associations, institutions, and interest groups. Data about tourism and agro-tourism in Italy
62 have mainly been found in the ISTAT website (www.istat.it) the Italian national bureau for
63 statistics.
64
65
66 3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
67
68 Italy has always been a major tourist destination [5]: centuries ago, it was the pilgrims who
69 came from the whole Christianity to worship in Rome and to pay homage to famous Saints
70 scattered all over the country. Then it was the desire to see the ruins and the legacy of the
71 Roman Empire and the masterpieces of the Renaissance, which motivated nobles and
72 artists to visit Italy for the so called “grand tour”.
73
74 After the II World War and during the economic boom that characterized the 50’s and 60’s,
75 the natural beauties of the Mediterranean coast and of the Alps were discovered by millions
76 of foreigners, mainly European. Italians too, thanks to their increased income, started to
77 enjoy their holidays and begun discovering the beauties of their own country. In recent years,
78 although the rivalry with traditional competitors (France, Spain, and Greece, just to mention a
79 few) remains strong and competition with newcomers (Turkey, Egypt, Morocco, Emirates,
80 etc.) is fierce, the flow of tourists has remained quite strong. One of the challenges of the
81 tourism industry has been to attract tourists out of the usual routes, main towns and
82 destinations (Naples, Rome, Florence, Pisa, Rimini, Venice, the Alps, etc...), to discover the
83 nature, the cultural heritage and the foods of the whole country.
84
85 An increasing number of tourists, not only in Italy, is searching new experiences and
86 expresses the desire to reconnect with the cultural roots of foods, in the places where the
 87 ingredients are originated and where gastronomy was born [6]. Within this framework,
88 agritourism has played and will play a major role, because the farms are perceived by the
89 urban consumers as the best places for leisure, and at the same time the farmers need to
90 diversify their sources of income.
91
92 The number of farms offering some sorts of hospitality (Table 1) has increased from 8,905 in
93 1998, when this type of data were first collected, to 19,973 in 2010, equal to +7.7%, thanks
94 to the investments by the farmers themselves, partially supported by capital grants provided
95 by the European Union within several phases of its Rural Development Programmes. The
96 number of beds has increased even more, by 10.1%, from 68,754 in 1998 to 193,480 in
97 2009 (data for 2010 not available). The average availability in 2009 is consequently 10.1
98 beds per operator, versus the initial number of 7.7 beds per farm in 1998.
99
100 The 19,019 agritourism farms registered in 2009 were unequally scattered all over Italy
101 (Table 2), with peak concentrations in a few regions like Tuscany and Trentino-Sud Tirol,
102 where respectively 21.3% and 16.8% of the Italian agritourism farms were located. In the
103 same Table it is possible to notice that in these two Regions the relevance of agritourism is
104 extremely high: in Trentino - Sud Tirol, at the North-eastern border with Italy, on the Alps,
105 11% of the active farms are engaged in agritourism activities, and in Tuscany 10% of active
106 farms are involved in this sector, against an Italian average of 2.4%
107
108
109 Table 1. Evolution of agritourism in Italy
110
Turn
Year Farms no. Beds no.
over*
1998 8,905 68,754
1999 8,758 100,000 400
2000 9,314 110,000 500
2001 10,662 111,000 620
2002 11,487 118,000 710
2003 12,603 129,000 780
2004 14,719 152,700 797
2005 15,327
2006 16,765 167,087 880
2007 17,720 1.000
2008 18,480 189,013 1.100
2009 19,019 193,480 1.000
2010 19,973 1.025
2011 1.230
6
111 * in 10 current euro
112 Source: [7]
113
114
115 It is clear that also in this case, like for all other kinds of innovations, there are early adopters
116 as well as laggards [8] and that in many parts of the Italian Peninsula and of the Islands still
117 there are potentialities to be explored. In Sicily and Puglia, for example, only 0.6% and 0.3%
118 of farmers are involved in agritourism, while both regions offer incredible landscapes,
119 beaches, cultural heritage sites and an extremely rich gastronomy. Low cost flight operators
120 have discovered these destinations and masses of tourists are pouring into these two
121 regions, from Northern European countries, but farmers still have to mobilize themselves to
122 intercept at least a small part of this flow.
123
124
125 Table 2. Operating farms and agritourism farms in 2009
126
All farms Agritourism farms
Regions
no. no. % % of all index
Piemonte 59,884 963 5.1 1.6 68.2
Valle d'Aosta 1,761 53 0.3 3.0 127.7
Lombardia 49,911 1,246 6.6 2.5 105.9
Liguria 11,563 441 2.3 3.8 161.8
Trentino-Sud Tirol 28,987 3,192 16.8 11.0 467.1
Veneto 73,831 1,261 6.6 1.7 72.5
Friuli-VG 16,715 524 2.8 3.1 133.0
Emilia-Romagna 64,881 896 4.7 1.4 58.6
Toscana 40,401 4,046 21.3 10.0 424.8
Umbria 17,624 1,020 5.4 5.8 245.5
Marche 31,049 771 4.1 2.5 105.3
Lazio 45,100 704 3.7 1.6 66.2
Abruzzo 29,874 663 3.5 2.2 94.1
Molise 10,828 89 0.5 0.8 34.9
Campania 68,510 849 4.5 1.2 52.6
Puglia 84,434 282 1.5 0.3 14.2
Basilicata 18,830 224 1.2 1.2 50.5
Calabria 30,556 482 2.5 1.6 66.9
Sicilia 87,868 538 2.8 0.6 26.0
Sardegna 34,202 775 4.1 2.3 96.1
Italia 806,809 19,019 100.0 2.4 100.0
127
128
129 3.1 Heterogeneity of agritourism
130
131 Within the broad concept of agritourism, there are at least two main categories: the landlords
132 and the family farmers.
133
134 To the first category belong all those operators who once managed their large estates with
135 share croppers and farm hands, and also used large amounts of seasonal landless workers.
136 During the green revolution, from the ‘50s through the ‘70s, these large producers have
137 simplified their cropping systems and mechanized all operations. Many of these landlords
138 lived and still live in town, have other sources of income, and the farm is managed by a
139 supervisor. These estates had a large number of houses for the sharecroppers and their
140 families, and buildings for the farmhands. In this category, we often find luxurious agritourism
141 operations, offering independent apartments, hotel – like treatments, facilities such horse
142 club, spa, archery, etc. The human relationships between the landlords or the farm
143 supervisor and the clients are almost zero. Tourists are mostly received and interact with
144 employees, who generally have received a training or even higher education for the hotel
145 industry.
146
147 To the second category belong the “evolved” family farmers, who have always managed
148 their relatively small farms with the workforce provided by the family members, occasionally
149 helped by some neighbours and more rarely by farmhands. Also the operators of this
150 category have mechanized their operations and simplified their production systems, but they
151 live on the farm and their income is largely dependent on agriculture. Compared to the ‘50s,
152 the size of the family has decreased and there were vacant homes and buildings suitable for
153 agritourism. Within this category, we find simpler on farm accommodations (rooms and
154 apartments), restaurants if the case, and other facilities. Clearly, in these farms the guests
155 may link directly with the farmers and their families, but the quality of the services might not
156 be as good as in the previous category;
157
158 A very special segment within the agritourism, dealing mostly with kids, from 5-6 to 14 years,
159 is represented by the so – called Didactic or Teaching farms, where urban kids,
160 accompanied by teachers and sometimes by some parents, can learn about several aspects
161 of the countryside and more generally about natural cycles. There are presently about 2,225
162 farms of this type, with their own association. The establishment and the operations of a
163 didactic farm require special attention and very qualified people.
164
165 The whole farm must be carefully organized, to avoid even the smallest risk for kids, and all
166 facilities must be sized to let kids work and learn. Some didactic farms have a bakery or a
167 dairy lab where kids can make bread and cheeses under the guidance of an instructor. All
168 didactic farms have a kind of a small zoo, where most farm animals can be seen and
169 touched. The home garden is designed to facilitate the work of kids, who have properly
170 dimensioned tools and implements. The didactic farms offer a variety of options, from the
171 half a day visit to one week stay, full board, from Monday to Friday. There are even didactic
172 farms offering summer weeks with full immersion in English, with English speaking animators
173 taking care of the young guests.
174
175 Another peculiar type of agritourism is represented by the 1,299 organic agritourism farms,
176 where the customers are ensured that the surrounding environment is chemical free and that
177 the food is 100% organic. In some cases, also the renovation of the farm buildings has been
178 realized by following the guidelines of organic architecture, and the furniture and all textiles
179 have been produced organically. Other aspects are also considered, regarding energy
180 production and energy saving devices, water use and its recycling, composting of food
181 wastes, etc.
182
183 3.2 Motivations and goals
184
185 On farm tourism represents an opportunity for farmers and landlords to make full use of
186 their assets and to diversify their activities, with a positive impact on employment and
187 incomes. To practice agritourism, existing buildings need to be renovated and to respect the
188 most recent norms about safety for all visitors and access for people with disabilities. In
189 Italy, where tens of thousands of houses, mansions and even castles in the countryside had
190 been abandoned during the “rural exodus” of the ‘50s and ‘60s, agritourism has represented
191 a great opportunity for many landlords, who have recuperated and modernized empty
192 buildings, which were almost falling apart. The impact of such renovations on the rural
193 economy has been impressive, because small local firms and craftsmen have been
194 involved. Such renovations have taken place also in the case of smaller family farms, where
195 the family size has dropped, and there were unused buildings or empty wings of the main
196 building. In other cases, empty farm buildings, once used for animal productions or for
197 storage, have been recycled into rooms, apartments and dining rooms, often with
198 astonishing results of great quality.
199
200 In some cases, the decision to venture into agritourism is accompanied by an at least partial
201 modification of the crops and of the farming system, to produce goods for the tourists and,
202 when the case, for the on farm-restaurant. Fruit trees of all sorts and several types of small
203 animals, eliminated from the farms during the “industrialization” of agriculture that took
204 place in the ‘60s and ‘70s, have been reintroduced. Horses are quite frequent, normally of
205 breeds known for their peaceful and calm attitudes, and in recent years some agritourism
206 farmers have even reintroduced mules and donkeys, for riding and for transporting heavy
207 loads, if excursions lasting several days are among the possibilities offered to the guests.
208 Very frequently, small facilities, always controlled and authorized by the Health Service, are
209 realized for on farm processing of jams, sauces, meats, dairy products, breads, cakes and
210 pies, etc. There has been an enormous effort to revitalize ancient and typical products and
211 recipes, to be used at the on farm restaurants and for items to sell to customers.
212
213 The family members can be engaged in activities which are generally less heavy, less
214 dangerous, better paid and more rewarding (INEA, Indagine sulle tipologia di offerta e sulle
215 motivazioni delle imprese, unpublished document, Rome. 2010): receiving the guests,
216 cooking the meals, guiding the tourists through the farm and nearby wild areas, explaining
217 how to rear animals, teaching how to make marmalades and pies, etc. Some of these tasks
218 might seem simple and traditional, but they require good communication skills and proper
219 attitudes, while other tasks surely demand appropriate training and even specific education.
220 For example, many potential and actual clients are not Italians and do not speak Italian.
221 Nowadays, most advertising and booking take place through internet and potential
222 customers expect that agritourism operators can write and talk at least in English. Such
223 tasks and the consequent good income normally give more space to the younger members
224 of the family, who might otherwise be tempted to leave and move to town. When young
225 people are not available within the family, there are job opportunities for outsiders, who can
226 be employed with annual or seasonal contracts.
227
228 The final result of all these efforts is that the average net farm income per adult working unit
229 is much higher for the agritourism farms than for the farms without agritourism. When the
230 agritourism farms are managed with organic methods, the economic result is even better
231 (Pesce A. Lo stato dell’agriturismo in Italia: situazione attuale e prospettive nella politica di
232 sviluppo rurale. unpublished ppt, Osservatorio Nazionale sull’Agriturismo – INEA. Roma.
233 2010).
234
235 3.3 Diversification of the offer
236
237 The diversification of the offer is very important. Most tourists come to the countryside to
238 relax (Table 3), but they do not want to lay idle. After motivations like relax and natural
239 beauty of the surroundings, guests are attracted by the agritourism experience to practice
240 sports, or to taste food and wines, and to visit the surroundings and the cultural heritage.
241
242 To meet the expectations of the incoming guests (Table 4), tasting activities are organized
243 by 66.5% of the operators, walks by 53.3%, followed by cultural activities by 43.7%, bike
244 rides by 40.9%, cooking classes by 33.5% sporting events area available by 20.8% and so
245 on. Many operators rent bikes, horses, canoes, organize excursions to natural attractions
246 and to nearby monuments. In many villages and small towns there are museums, churches,
247 and ancient manors open to the public worth a visit. In some cases, weekend long courses
248 or one week courses are proposed, generally in cooperation with local artists or craftsmen
249 to learn how to paint, to make ceramics, or to carve objects in wood. In other cases, very
250 exotic programs are offered, such as yoga courses, alternative medicine, or classes of
251 various philosophies.
252
253 When these activities are not possible within one single farm, the presence of this flow of
254 tourists ignite other off farm activities, proposed by local firms, such as fishing and canoeing,
255 paragliding, ballooning, tree climbing, etc., all activities linked with nature and normally
256 managed and staffed by young rural people.
257
258 To accommodate the tourists, not only the buildings, but also the surrounding areas must be
259 improved and nice looking. The road leading to the farmhouse, from the farm gate to the
260 parking lot must be kept in good status, decorative shrubs and trees must be planted, and
261 flowers must embellish the entire area. Taking into consideration the long and hot Italian
262 summers, the presence of a swimming pool is nowadays almost a must and as a matter of
263 fact the pool is present in 37% of the agritourism farms. In some cases, there are also other
264 facilities, like a small gym and a sauna. All these aspects do not only make the tourists
265 happy, but they also contribute to the improvement of the life quality of all farm family
266 members, who also obviously enjoy the pool, the gym and the whole beautiful scenario [11].
267
268
269 Table 3. Motivations of agritourists (%)
270
Motivations Italians Foreigners
Ideal place for relax 46.7 44.0
Natural beauty of the place 44.8 49.9
Ideal place for sports 30.7 15.0
Exclusive location 18.1 6.6
Good prices 16.6 17.6
Desire to visit a place never visited before 15.0 13.3
Food and wines 8.3 14.1
Available amusements 7.7 7.9
Ideal place for kids 7.4 16.1
Cultural heritage nearby 6.3 15.2
271 Source: [9]
272
273
274 Agritourism operators normally show a higher level of self and job-satisfaction, when
275 compared with the normal farmers, because they feel more appreciated and better
276 understood by the society at large. It is not only a matter of higher income (which is normally
277 the rule), but a sum of different factors: the higher quality of their houses and surroundings,
278 the appreciation of the clients, the fact that many visitors express their positive judgement in
279 the international websites, etc.
280
281 3.4 Institutional involvement and development
282
283 In modern times, the first agritourism activities can be traced back to the early ‘70s, but
284 several problems quickly aroused, because of the lack of formal regulations and the
285 consequent struggles with the local branches of the Ministry of Interiors, responsible for the
286 recording the movement of tourists, the Ministry of Finances, responsible for the tax system,
287 and with the Health Ministry, responsible for the health of customers. Even the Chambers of
288 Agriculture and the Municipalities, responsible for issuing the authorizations to operate, did
289 not know how to act. In several occasions, the first pioneers have been fined and even
290 obliged to close their activities, or they were given the option the set up a totally different
291 firm, regulated, registered and taxed as a normal restaurant and hotel. For most small
292 operators, with a few rooms and a seasonal business, this was unrealistic.
293
294 Already in 1965 a first association had been established: AGRITURIST, by a small number
295 of members of the large farmers’ union, mainly based in Tuscany, to lobby at local and
296 national level. A few years later, in 1973, the largest family farmers’ union, Coldiretti,
297 established its own movement, named Terranostra (Our land). In 1978, a first training course
298 was organized, by AGRITURIST in cooperation with the national Ministry of Agriculture, to
299 inform a group of local officers and potential operators. Turismo Verde (Green Tourism) was
300 set up in 1980 by another union of small farmers. To coordinate their actions, these three
301 organizations have joined in the national association ANAGRITUR.
302
303
304 Table 4. Services offered in 2010
305
Services % Activities %
Rooms / apartments 89.1 Tasting 66.5
Farm shop 79.2 Walks 53.3
Restaurant 68.5 Cultural activities 43.7
Swimming pool 37.1 Bike rides 40.9
Camping 10.7 Cooking classes 33.5
Tennis 4.8 Didactic farms 33.2
Indoor gym 2.3 Cultural meetings 28.4
Other services 5.6 Excursions 24.4
Sporting activities 20.8
Horse rides 14.0
Handicraft courses 8.4
Other activities 10.9
306 Source: [10]
307
308
309 The continuous pressure by the agricultural sector finally has led the National Parliament to
310 issue the Law 730/1985, updated in 1996 by the Law no. 06, recognizing that agritourism,
311 within certain limits (number of rooms, number of beds, number of seats at the restaurant,
312 source of ingredients for the meals, etc.) is an agricultural activity, regulated, for the value
313 added taxation and for income taxation purposes, by the same rules that supervise all other
314 agricultural activities. Each one of the 19 Regions and two autonomous provinces
315 composing Italy has then issued its own regional or provincial legislation, sometimes with
316 some minor adaptations to the specificities of local agriculture, culture and traditions.
317
318 It is worth mentioning that several local administrations have been very active for the
319 promotion of agritourism. Agricultural products, special foods, cheeses, wines and olive oil,
320 have been used to attract tourists out of the main tourist attractions and into smaller towns
321 and the countryside. In 1990, the Association “Towns of the Truffle” was established,
322 followed in 1993 by the Movement “Tourism of the Wine” and in 1994 by the Association
323 “Towns of the Olive Oil”. In 1999, the National Parliament issued the national Law no. 268
324 “Routes of the Wine”, with the norms and guidelines to set up and manage, at local level, an
325 entire system, where the agritourism farms play a major role to attract national and
326 international tourists.
327
328 Local authorities, in cooperation with the private sector, have done much for the promotion of
329 their territories, through an active participation in national and international fairs of tourism,
330 where large operators interact to elaborate package tours. Another action is the coordination
331 of events, linking local products, culture, art exhibition, music and sports, to have something
332 – always new and attractive, to motivate tourists to come. Another important public action,
333 often implemented also with European funds, has been the rehabilitation and maintenance
334 of common goods, such as pathways, lakesides, natural ponds and rivers, which can be
335 used by the agro-tourists for walks and excursions.
336
337 Since 1980, within the first Integrated Mediterranean Projects, and then with the LEADER
338 rural development projects, and nowadays within the Rural Development Plans several
339 actions for the expansion and improvement of agritourism have been co-financed by the
340 European Union to local authorities, to groups and even to individual farmers: feasibility
341 studies, training courses and extension activities, rural museums, territorial promotion, etc.
342 have facilitated the synergies between public and private actors.
343
344 3.5 Growth with some clouds
345
346 The expansion of the number of agritourism farms has been accompanied by a constant
347 increase of the arrivals of guests, from Italy and abroad (Table 5).
348
349 The number of Italians coming to agritourism farms to spend at least some of their holidays
350 has grown from 847,000 in 2005 to 1,298,000 in 2010 (+ 53%), without any sign of
351 downturn. The number of days spent at the farms has shown a lesser growth (+ 39%) and
352 these two combined phenomena determine that the average stay of an Italian tourist has
353 decreased from 3.95 nights to 3.59 (Table 6). The same can be said about the foreign
354 visitors, whose total number of arrivals from 2005 to 2010 has grown even more, by 61%,
355 but whose average stay has decreased from 4.86 to 4.5 nights.
356
357 Much of this modification can be due to changing patterns of tourism, with people preferring
358 shorter and more frequent holidays, distributed throughout the year, with the so called
359 “vagabond tourism”, with people moving, during the same holiday, from region to region, and
360 consequently changing hotel or agritourism every two-three days.
361
362
363 Table 5. Arrivals and nights of stay in agritourism farms
364
Italians Foreigners Total
Days of Days of Days of
Years Arrivals Arrivals Arrivals
stay stay stay
n000 ∆% n000 ∆% n000 ∆% n000 ∆% n000 ∆% n000 ∆%
2005 847 3,346 504 3,212 1,350 6,558
2006 929 9.7 3,619 8.2 579 14.9 3,595 11.9 1,508 11.7 7,214 10.0
2007 1,092 17.6 4,132 14.2 680 17.5 4,115 14.5 1,772 17.6 8,246 14.3
2008 1,169 7.1 4,350 5.3 709 4.3 4,436 7.8 1,878 6.0 8,786 6.5
2009 1,213 3.7 4,433 1.9 741 4.5 4,530 2.1 1,954 4.0 8,962 2.0
2010 1,298 7.0 4,654 5.0 812 9.7 4,843 6.9 2,110 8.0 9,498 6.0
365 Source: Elaboration on ISTAT data
366
367
368 The nationality of the foreign guests is another important aspect [11] (ISMEA. La domanda di
369 agriturismo in alcuni mercati europei, unpublished document, Rome. 2012), since it
370 influences their behaviour and must be considered in any promotional activity. Most
371 foreigners come from nearby German speaking countries, like Germany, Austria and
372 Switzerland and they normally reach their destination with their own car. A similar behaviour
373 can be observed for the Dutch, who have enormously increased their presence in the
374 agritourism farms and more recently for citizens of Eastern European countries, like Croatia,
375 Slovenia, Poland, Czech Republic, etc.
376
377
378 Table 6. Average stay (no. of nights)
379
Year Italians Foreigners Total
2005 3.95 6.38 4.86
2006 3.90 6.21 4.79
2007 3.78 6.05 4.65
2008 3.72 6.26 4.68
2009 3.65 6.11 4.59
2010 3.59 5.96 4.50
380 Source: ISTAT
381
382
383 Most European tourists plan carefully their holidays and spend long time browsing the net:
384 they visit the websites of the likely destinations, ask for more information from the
385 agritourism operators, and compare prices [12]. Tourists from other countries, like Spain,
386 United Kingdom, the Nordic Countries and Russia normally arrive by air and tend to prefer
387 the traditional destinations: towns like Rome, Venice, Naples, sea resorts like Capri or the
388 Riviera and the Alps. Something similar can be said for the Japanese, Korean and Chinese
389 tourists, who furthermore rarely travel alone and normally came with well organized package
390 tours, which leave no time to the countryside and agritourism. Most US citizens come to Italy
391 in groups and just a small minority comes to visit the countryside, but their number is
392 growing.
393
394 3.6 Problems and perspectives
395
396 The success of agritourism and the growing demand for holidays in the countryside is luring
397 non agricultural investors and operators, to offer several other types of hospitality: hotels,
398 pensions, maison de charme, relais et chateaux, bed and breakfast, hotels with a nearby
399 farm, rural houses, camping sites, etc. Another type of competition, in the upper part of the
400 market, is represented by the growing number of wellness centres established in the
401 countryside, sometimes built from scratch, sometimes built on pre-existing farm buildings,
402 where rich people come for a one or two week body and mind treatment, composed of
403 massages, spa, personalised menu (generally bio, macrobiotic and vegetarian), relaxing
404 walks in the countryside, etc. All these activities are surely positive for the rural economy, but
405 many customers, both Italians and foreigners, confuse these experiences with agritourism,
406 and consequently they represent a direct competition with the original on farm tourism.
407
408 The relative gravity of the situation is demonstrated by the decreased utilization rate of the
409 available rooms (Table 7), that for all agritourism farms was in 2012 only 31.7%, twelve
410 points below the average of all hotels. The best performance was shown by the five star
411 hotels, with a utilization rate that was near to 60%.
412
413 This difference is surely due to several factors, that make the 5 star hotels unique and
414 unreachable, such as the locations and the quality of services, but another aspect to
415 consider is the amount of resources spent for advertisement, promotion and coordination
416 with large scale tourism operators. Most agritourism farmers are aware of this weakness
417 (INEA 2010b): 80.9% think that their promotion needs a profound change and only 7.5%
418 believe that they are already doing the best they can do.
419
420
421 Table 7. Utilization rate of rooms (%)
422
Category of accomodation 2011 2012
Hotels (all classes) 48.4 44.0
Other types of accomodations 37.6 36.6
-- Agritourism 32.8 31.7
Italy 43.8 40.6
423 Source: Osservatorio Nazionale sul Turismo. Rome. 2013
424
425
426 In the actual competitive and globalized world, the individual promotion, implemented by
427 each agritourism, must be mainly made through internet, with an updated and interactive
428 website, in several languages, with videos and photo gallery and possibly at least one video
429 cam offering 360° view of the farm in all moments of the year. Old style leaflets and
430 brochures may still be used, to be distributed at national and international fairs of the sector,
431 like Agri&Tour held in Italy annually, and the BIT (International Exchange of Tourism) held
432 also in Italy in Milan, mainly for international operators.
433
434 To attract large numbers of clients, if the agritourism farm has at least twenty beds, the links
435 with some foreign and domestic tour operators could be a more appropriate – although
436 partial solution, proposing some sorts of packages; in this case the problem is that tour
437 operators purchase in advance a large number of nights, beds and services, but squeeze
438 the prices and the margins become extremely thin. Another option, not yet fully explored is a
439 more attractive and diversified prices policy for the different moments of the year (peak
440 season, mid-season, national holidays, low season, etc.) and for the different categories
441 (singles, elderly, families with children, groups of at least n persons, etc.). There are periods
442 of the year when families with kids at school cannot travel, but older people have more
443 freedom. In some periods, the climate might not be attractive for Italians, but it could be
444 more than satisfactory for Northern Europeans, who fear the hot of the summer instead.
445
446 More and always diversified activities are needed, on the farm or nearby, also in cooperation
447 with other agritourism farms, artists and local craftsmen. The local and national consumers
448 can be attracted when a range of possibilities are offered, ranging from pottery to textiles,
449 from food processing to paintings, all sorts of yoga courses and so on.
450
451
452 4. CONCLUSION
453
454 For almost three decades, since the early ‘80s, agritourism has represented a very good
455 opportunity for increasing on farm employment and income. Within the new paradigm of
456 multifunctionality, agritourism has facilitated both horizontal and vertical diversification.
457 Millions of tourists have been at least partially diverted from the classic destinations and
458 attracted into rural areas. Places never visited before by any tourist have been discovered by
459 Italians and foreigners, lured by the beauty of landscapes, the quality of foods, the relaxing
460 atmosphere and the friendly hospitality. Agritourism has played a pivotal role for rural
461 development, with a multiplying effect on induced activities [13] [14] [15].
462
463 This initial take-off phase, characterized by a good dose of naïveté, with many operators
464 entering into the sector with much enthusiasm but without proper planning or proper training,
465 is nowadays over. This is not typically Italian, because similar problems can be found also in
466 other countries [16] The low and decreasing utilization rate of the last two years, also in
467 comparison with other segments of the tourist sector, confirms that the Italian agritourism
468 movement needs a higher level of professionalism and better organization. The sustainability
469 of the whole sector needs to be revisited and better understood [17].
470
471 Concepts like market segmentation should become familiar and should be applied: the same
472 type of offer cannot be proposed to young Italian couples and to older Germans. Each
473 category of potential clients (children, the elderly, families, organic and vegetarians, rich
474 Russians and alternative Americans, animal lovers, adventurers and relax lovers, and so on)
475 should be the object of study and of appropriate offers, hopefully organized as a package, to
476 be marketed online or through travel agencies.
477
478 The individual promotion, which remains of extreme importance, should progressively be
479 accompanied and complemented by integrated offers, developed together by different
480 operators to realize the much needed scale economies. A territorial marketing approach, that
481 links together agritourism, culture, outdoor activities, indoor activities, food and wine tasting,
482 and more, should be sought, to propose diversified and rich experiences, where the guests
483 can enjoy a sort of full immersion into that specific part of Italy. Another type of package
484 could be organized around the rich gastronomy of Italy, offering guided tours through
485 different regions, to discover the variety of Italian foods and wines, exactly in the places
486 where they were born; also this latter proposal clearly requires a collaborative approach by
487 many operators, coordination and professionalism.
488
489 Time has also arrived to recognize formally that agritourism farms do not all belong to the
490 same category. Like hotels and pensions, there should be national standards, based on
491 multiple criteria, to assess the quality of the structures, of the personnel and of the services.
492 Like for the hotel industry, agritourism farms should be given a final score, from one to five,
493 with one meaning very low quality and five meaning top class; the Ministry of Agriculture has
494 already elaborated a proposal (Proposta per una metodologia unitaria di classificazione
495 dell’agriturismo italiano. unpublished document. Rome. 2010) that must be shared and
496 improved by the Regional Governments, to which in Italy agricultural policy has been
497 devoluted. About ten Regions, out of the twenty composing Italy, have already introduced a
498 classification system, with farms having from one to five “wheat ears”, but the parameters
499 and the scoring methods are not homogeneous. ICEA, a certification body for organic
500 products, also certifies and classifies the organic agritourism farms into five categories (from
501 one to five “suns”), based on a set of five groups of criteria (protection of environment,
502 ecological management, promotion of local culture, organic food and sustainable
503 transportation; some criteria are compulsory, whereas other ones are optional); presently,
504 this voluntary certification has been asked only by 105 operators. Such examples show that
505 some agritourism operators and institutions are aware that consumers want to be ensured
506 about the quality of the hospitality, but such experiences should be up-scaled and the
507 standards should be applied at national level.
508
509
510 COMPETING INTERESTS
511
512 The Author has declared that no competing interests exist.
513
514
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553
554
555
556
557 APPENDIX
558