Developing rural tourism in the context of sustainable bioeconomy – a Romanian perspective

Due to the massive urbanization during the second half of the 20th century, rural areas have undergone major structural changes defined by the migration of villagers to cities (implicitly the depopulation of villages), the introduction of new techniques and technologies for working the land and infrastructure developments. In order to call public attention upon these problems and in the attempt to rehabilitate rural areas, more intensive exploitation of tourism resources has taken place. Tourist resources are the elements referring to the social, cultural, historical, human and natural specifics of a country. In rural tourism, travelers take part in the activities, lifestyle and traditions of rural communities, and in this manner they benefit from an entirely personalized experience. They usually rent rural accommodation, which they can combine with rural activities and attractions (recreational and fun). Rural tourism is defined as all rural tourism activities, primarily agrotourism boarding houses and farms, but also small restaurants and hotels or other accommodation. However, there are countries that classify any activity undertaken outside the city as rural tourism. Research in the field of rural tourism development favors the creation of so-called integrated rural tourism (at both the theoretical and practical level) for the exploitation of underdeveloped regions, creating strong links between the social, cultural, economic and environmental resources. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the level of rural tourism in Romania by means of econometric methods and establish means of aligning the Romanian rural tourism product to international standards. One of the main conclusions the present study draws that is tourism is an important economic segment of sustainable development and is also a key component in the formation of the country image at regional and international level.