WAC2024 - 2° World Agritourism Congress

For the second time, the World Congress on Agritourism acts as an international platform for scientists, practitioners, associations, stakeholders, businesses, and other actors. The aim is to discuss the state-of-the-art, challenges, opportunities, and limitations of agritourism as well as future development perspectives of this kind of tourism in rural areas worldwide. The overarching question is: What do we have to do to make agritourism a successful and sustainable type of tourism in rural areas. The 2024 edition is specifically dedicated to the agritourism´s contribution to sustainable development and/or challenges linked to its achievement on and off the farm. Agritourism represents a significant organisational and operational change of the farm´s management, economy and living environment. Which practices enable a sustainable management? How to keep a reasonable interactive balance between touristic and agricultural activities? What about new approaches such as regenerative agritourism? The congress wants to explore the social, economic, and environmental transformations for the farm and its environment when offering agritourism. We also assume that Agritourism is more than experiencing agricultural products, farm life and overnight stays in farm buildings. It represents a unique cultural and interactive experience, an asset for keeping rural areas vital and maintain agricultural practices and small structured cultural landscapes. But does this represent the reality? What works, what rather doesn’t? With whom do agritourism establishments cooperate? Are they well integrated in community life? Who are the target groups, and do they change? We look behind the scenes and discuss different perspectives that go beyond farm gates.