Rural tourism: the evolution of practice and research approaches – towards a new generation concept?

TLDR

Rural tourism has evolved since the 1970s into a key rural regeneration and conservation tool, following Butler’s tourism life cycle with phases of emergence, growth, and complexity, but now faces challenges such as competition, governance gaps, and rapid societal and technological change. The study advocates establishing a research‑led New Generation Rural Tourism, emphasizing informed destination development, market insight, modern marketing, and holistic sustainability, and proposes forming an international research group to advance this agenda. The authors analyzed 1,848 Scopus articles published since 2000 to map research responses to rural tourism’s growth, categorizing them by subject area and geographic focus.

Abstract

This paper charts the evolution of rural tourism in the developed world as an alternative tourism form, popular since the 1970s with the market and with policy makers as a rural regeneration and conservation tool. It outlines parallels with the Butler tourism area life cycle: emergence; volume growth, complexity and geographical spread; followed by problems arising from increasing competition, lack of governance and leadership, societal change and technical developments. Research responses to rural tourism's growth and change are examined, analysing 1848 articles published since 2000 by interrogating Scopus to reveal responses by subject category and geographic distribution. The papers in the Journal of Sustainable Tourism's new rural tourism Special Issue are discussed, noting how researchers have explored the conversion of rural tourism from sightseeing to numerous experiential activities, together with papers discussing governance, leadership, networking, product development and marketing. The paper concludes by calling for the research-led creation of a New Generation Rural Tourism, based on informed destination development and management, better understanding of markets and modern marketing, and professional approaches to holistic and sustainability enhancing management. The formation of an international rural tourism research group to explore, assist and assess New Generation Rural Tourism is suggested.