Do German winegrowers see a connection between biodiversity and wine tourism?

Abstract

Abstract German winegrowers are increasingly creating habitats in wine landscapes that are necessary for the preservation of biodiversity. Since biodiversity in the landscape can have a positive impact on tourism attractiveness, one might assume that winemakers are also promoting tourism by doing so, but are they aware of this? The aim of this study is to explore whether German winegrowers see a link between biodiversity and tourism in wine regions and what this link might look like. For this purpose, 52 qualitative interviews were conducted with German winegrowers from all 13 German wine regions. The results show that German winemakers are aware of the central importance of the landscape in attracting tourists and that the clear majority of the interviewed winegrowers believe that a biodiverse landscape has a positive impact on tourism in wine regions. This work reveals unanswered research questions and opens a wide field for researchers to address the topic. Promoting biodiversity could be one of the most important factors contributing to the appeal of wine landscapes and could thus increase the attractiveness of wine regions for potential visitors. Ultimately, tourism flows could be optimized and the predominantly rural German wine regions could preserve their cultural heritage and develop into new aspects of sustainability.