Agritourists.

Abstract

Abstract This chapter describes the types of people who would be interested in agritourism. USDA estimated that over 62 million people aged over 16 visited agritourist farms within 1 year. This does not include children aged below 16 years, estimated at 20 million. Data given by the Travel Industry Association of America suggest even 87 million. A common characteristic of agritourists is their willingness to stay on a farm, observe production processes, have contact with animals, etc. Agritourism is primarily oriented towards city inhabitants, especially from big cities and medium-sized towns. From the point of view of agritourism it is important to learn the characteristics of city inhabitants. The city population can be divided into the population of small and medium-sized towns and that of big cities. The bigger the size of a town or city, the higher the percentage of inhabitants interested in agritourism. However, most clients of agritourist farms will come from big and medium-sized cities. The main consumers of agritourist services tend to be people with university or higher education and their children. A family that has collected material assets may use agritourist services even if they have a lower income. They are more likely to use agritourist services than a family on their way to wealth. Families on their way to wealth are not the best clients of agritourist farms. Depending on the time of staying on the farm, agritourist clients can be grouped into the following segments: momentary agritourists; one-day agritourists; agritourists staying overnight; weekend agritourists; holidaymakers. At least two groups of potential tourists, discoverers and wanderers, may be potential clients of agritourist farms and rural tourism accommodation.