Rural tourism

Rural tourism

Rural tourism focuses on actively participating in a rural lifestyle. It can be a variant of ecotourism. Many rural villages can facilitate tourism because many villagers are hospitable and eager to welcome (and sometime even host) visitors. Agriculture is becoming highly mechanized and therefore, requires less manual labor. This trend is causing economic pressure on some villages, which in turn causes young people to move to urban areas. There is however, a segment of the urban population that is interested in visiting the rural areas and understanding the lifestyle. This segment in the tourism industry has been rapidly growing in the past decade, leading to rural tourism becoming not just a good business prospect, but a genuine vacation trend.

Rural America is a popular tourist destination. It is home to highly productive agriculture, to abundant conventional and renewable energy resources and to an extraordinary array of natural amenities.  If these can be managed sustainably in ways that offer economic opportunities and improved quality of life for rural people while safeguarding the integrity of these resources for future generations, then rural America will be the foundation for ongoing national prosperity and global leadership.

Moreover, Rural America is everyone's fresh air and clean water, provides our water, grows our food, harvests the timber and gravel needed to build our homes and cities, mines the ore that produces our steel, and acts as the true steward of our national resources. We’ve had it good for so long we take it for granted. We cannot continue to do so any longer. And it is key to fueling our nation and feeding the world. Rural America has a role to play in building an economy where everyone does better. And that is the message that is not getting heard. You can help fix this.