Tourists’ motivations and preferences for agritourism activities

Abstract

The agritourism is a category of tourism in full expansion worldwide. By its social and economic contribution to the development of rural communities and farms, the agritourism became an attractive alternative for the diversification of agricultural businesses. The main aim of the present paper is to identify, based on the international literature of concern, which are the reasons that determine the tourists to choose agritourism as a form of leisure. The studies carried out by specialists in different countries point out that the tourists’ preference for agritourism is highly influenced by the context in which they are, and is generated by a wide range of “push” and “pull” type of factors. The tourists have different expectations from a stay at the agritourism farm due to a large variety of motivations. According to their nature, the reasons to practice agritourism are physical, emotional, cultural and personal, being subject to status or desire for self-development. The physical and mental relaxation, the opportunity to spend nice time together with the family or friends, the possibility to buy fresh fruits and vegetables and the wish to have direct contact with nature and to enjoy the beauty of landscapes are the most obvious motives that determine the tourists to attempt an agritourism experience. The participation at agricultural activities does not represented a major interest for agritourists. The relationships between the tourists’ preferences for agritourism activities and their motivations show that they are interested in those activities that are consistent with the initial reasons sustaining their decision to practice agritourism.