Romanian Rural Tourism: A Survey of Accommodation Facilities

Abstract

The modern type of rural tourism emerged during the 1970s and the 1980s (Lane & Kastenholz 2015). The rural tourism concept amalgamates different types of tourism that overlap and intertwine. It is largely agreed that rural tourism can assist the rural areas’ restructuring path mainly if its introduction rather complement the existing activities and is incorporated in the local economies and social structures. Since 1995 rural tourism was identified by Romanian authorities also as a major growth area that can address social and cultural inequalities. The present paper shows the growth of rural accommodation facilities over a decade (2005 and 2016). The survey also presents the spatial distribution of rural accommodations pointing toward a decrease in the uneven geographical distribution of rural lodgings through the entry on the rural tourist market of new localities. Furthermore, this research study reveals the diversification of rural accommodation portfolio regarding the type of accommodation, the ranking/classification of the respective lodgings and the lodging capacity. In addition, the paper draws the profile of rural accommodation facilities at national and regional levels, presenting the dominant type of accommodation units, the dominant classification and the dominant lodging capacity. The information is completed by the growth rate of lodgings and rooms and by the standing of rural accommodation in each county and region. Romania’s rural tourism reached this growth phase, thus it is difficult to evaluate how advanced the growth phase is. There is still an unexploited potential that can support further expansion. While the further development is expected to bring an increase in the number of localities reporting accommodation, it is also expected that an increase in quality of services and facilities along with a wider range of entertainment activities based on innovation should occur. JEL classification: L83

Tourism-Related Facility Development in Sagarmatha (Mount Everest) National Park and Buffer Zone, Nepal Himalaya

“…This study employed a mixed method to incorporate face-to-face questionnaire and semi-structured interview surveys to collect data in the field. As a quantitative method, the questionnaire has been largely used to investigate tourism-induced rural settlement changes [5,[10][11][12][13]. A semi-structured interview is an extensive method to collect rich and detailed data which can provide a holistic understanding of the phenomena under investigation [11], and has been effectively practiced by previous studies about rural landscape changes and rural tourism [11,47].…”

“…Thriving mountain tourism has also accelerated built-up expansion to accommodate many tourists, leading to the modification of the rural landscape [5]. Studies have explored tourism-induced changes in the features and functions of rural settlements [5,[10][11][12][13]. However, these studies offer limited investigation and analyses about the underlying processes and challenges of the resultant growth of different types of tourism-related facilities and distribution patterns.…”

Vineyards and Wineries in Alba County, Romania towards Sustainable Business Development

“…Urban areas concentrate the majority of the lodging units (80%), specifically 84 of them, split by type as it follows: Boarding houses (35), rooms to let (15), hotels (13), villas and tourist villas (six), hostels (six), apartments to rent (four), motels (four), and camping site (one). Enjoying an increasing trend since 2005 [64] (pp. 71-126), rural areas account in Alba County for 210 rooms and 440 beds, providing an average number of 10 beds per unit and an average of 2.1 beds per room.…”

Analysis on Tourists’ Preferences for Rural Tourism Destinations in Romania

“…In Romania, rural tourism is still a relatively new tourism product for the residents, who often prefer the mountains or the sea when it comes to holiday compared to only 2% who declared that they would prefer a rural tourism destination [17]. Many scholars consider that the potential for a sustainable development is very high [18][19][20][21][22] Rural tourism and agrotourism has developed rapidly in the last few decades in Romania [19]. Studies conducted in Romania stated that the most sought form of accommodation in the rural areas is represented by the agrotourism boarding houses, both by foreign tourists and Romanian tourists [20].…”

“…Studies conducted in Romania stated that the most sought form of accommodation in the rural areas is represented by the agrotourism boarding houses, both by foreign tourists and Romanian tourists [20]. Rural tourism is considered to have reached an increased growth phase from the point of view of the demand but also from the perspective of the increasing number of rural accommodation facilities [21], even if the level of tourist satisfaction does not always follow this high [22]. Analysis of rural tourists' behavior offers important information for developing sustainable tourism products.…”