Rural Tourism In Serbia Research Articles

Pandemic Boosts Prospects for Recovery of Rural Tourism in Serbia

Rural tourism in Serbia had its chance to shine with the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of this study was to determine to what extent the quality of rural service can contribute to improving rural tourism, and predictions for the continuation of the trend in terms of increasing the number of overnight stays in rural households. The obtained results show a small number of services in the sector could be improved, but that all elements except price value can influence the future development of rural tourism and that the number of overnight stays is expected to continue to grow. The importance and innovativeness of the research is reflected in the specific methodology that was applied, and the results complement those of previous research. It has been shown that villages in Serbia can create a barrier against COVID-19 through tourism.

The importance of establishment and development of touristic cooperatives in the economy of rural areas of Serbia

Rural tourism in Serbia and its development has positive effects on all aspects of rural development, both economic and social. The aim of this paperwork is to investigate the importance that touristic cooperatives in rural areas of Serbia, although relatively new in this area, have and can have on the overall development of rural areas. For the purpose of the research, an interview was conducted with the directors of the existing tourist cooperatives in Serbia. Based on the obtained data, it was determined that this form of cooperative association is necessary, not only because of the development of tourism in the countryside, but above all because of the survival of the Serbian village. The obtained data on the problems and limiting factors that cooperative members face in business can be a further basis for future research on the topic of rural development through the establishment and strengthening of tourist cooperatives.

Underdevelopment of rural tourism in Serbia: Causes, consequences and possible directions of development

The aim of this paper is to analyze the development of rural tourism in Serbia. The paper uses the method of survey research, analysis, synthesis, comparative and statistical methods. The author concludes that rural tourism in Serbia is underdeveloped. The reasons for this are numerous, and they primarily relate to problems and limitations in the development of supply, but also to the lack of demand. The consequences are the economic and social decline of rural areas. In order to develop rural tourism in Serbia, it is necessary to adopt new strategic documents, regulations and provide favorable continuous sources of financing for the development of all segments of the offer. For the purpose of balanced rural development, it is necessary to form an association at the national level, which should have branches in all administrative districts and play a key role in the further development of rural tourism in Serbia.

Implementation of information and communication technologies as assumption for successful development of rural tourism in the Republic of Serbia

The rapid development of information and communication technologies (ICTs) has a wide application in numerous activities today. It is necessary to look at the possibilities of implementation and impact of ICT on development of rural tourism. Bearing in mind that rural tourism in Serbia is in the initial stages of development, it is expected that the implementation of ICT could contribute to the increase in tourism, reducing the costs of promotion and business, strengthening the competitiveness of rural tourist destinations, etc. The paper examines the character and dynamics of the current development of rural tourism in Serbia and Europe. Previous experiences in the application of ICT in tourism have been analyzed. Examination of the impact of ICT on the competitiveness of Serbia as a tourist destination by correlation analysis has been carried out. The necessity of forming a unique database of accommodation facilities of rural tourism and the importance of linking them to some of the global distribution systems (GDS) have been pointed out. It is expected that the application of ICT in rural tourist business will increase farmers? turnover and their income. Furthermore, it can contribute to better promotion of rural tourist destinations and enable better monitoring of the character, dynamics and intensity of development of rural tourism. Given the positive impact of ICT on the business results, it is expected that the competitiveness of Serbia as a tourist destination will increase.

Competitiveness in rural tourism between Serbia and Hungary

Competition between tourist destinations and products has recently become very intense. While the market of rural tourism is on the rise, the future of many rural areas is uncertain due to the changes in agricultural production and the growing attractiveness of cities. In this paper, we are going to identify the factors that may influence the competitiveness of rural tourism in Serbia compared with Hungary, which is Serbia’s main competitor. We examined the views of the key stakeholders involved in the development of rural tourism in Serbia and Hungary. Our findings have led us to the conclusion that the level of rural tourism in Hungary is considerably higher than in Serbia as we found a statistically significant difference in the assessment of all the factors, except for ‘Safety and Security’. Hungarian experts do not see Serbia as their country’s competitor, which means that tourism policy makers should consider Hungary as a market that requires greater investment and greater efforts to meet the demands of their sophisticated rural tourists, which is impossible to achieve in a short period of time. In the following period, Hungary should be seen as Serbia’s partner and Serbian stakeholders should develop joint projects with their Hungarian counterparts, which will improve the quality of rural tourism in Serbia. At the moment, the Hungarian market of rural tourism presents an example of good practice.

Analyses of regulations regarding accommodation facilities categorisation in rural tourism in Serbia

The paper analyze the regulation on categorization of accommodation that relate to accommodation in rural tourism. The main aim of the paper is to estimate the point to which legal and administrative procedures reached in recognizing new forms of accommodation in rural tourism in Serbia as well as the level of compliance of legislation with some of the countries in the region. The results of the research render highly signifcant data on identifcation of roles, goals, procedures and purpose of the categorization aimed at pursuing market trends which is of crucial importance for tourism stakeholders. Moreover, the adjustments to international standards have become the imperative for Serbia to successfully continue the EU accession in this tourism branch as well.

SWOT analysis of the rural tourism as a channel of marketing for agricultural products in Serbia

In many countries, rural areas are undergoing significant socio-demographic and economic changes, and this trend is also present in Serbia. From the economic and demographic point of view, and this is particularly true for southern Serbia, the problem of depopulation, ageing and extinction of the village has arisen. The subject of this paper is rural tourism in Serbia, which is observed in the context of the new channel for marketing agricultural products of rural households and analyzed by SWOT methodology in order to capture all strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and possible threats. Results show that one of the highest priorities is the synthesis of agriculture and tourism in Serbia, which would be the basis for the development of diversification in rural communities. The development and advancement of the rural environment represent a sustainable and stable regional economic development.

Examination of regional disparity in the level of tourist offer in rural clusters of Serbia

Serbia is a country known for turbulent historical events, which completely disrupted the economic and political state of the country, and which had negative effects on the country’s tourist development. In this research, the authors pointed to the current state of the level of services provided in rural parts of Serbia, and on the basis of the obtained data, found that there are disparities in the examined clusters when it comes to the level and quality of the services provided. So far, only a small number of authors have pointed to this issue, however, this research discusses a key problem that has negative implications for the development of rural tourism in Serbia. By including results in further research related to rural tourism, it is possible to develop long-term plans for removing regional disparities in rural clusters in Serbia.

Budući trendovi i pravci razvoja ruralnog turizma u Srbiji i u svetu

Budući trendovi i pravci razvoja ruralnog turizma u Srbiji i u svetu

Significant involvement of agricultural holdings in rural tourism development in Serbia

There are a large number of farms in Serbia, which survived with a little capital and labor, and today one of the perspectives they see in the integration with the rural tourism. Tourism development is an incentive for the introduction of improvements in agricultural production, processing and supply of food, as well as the introduction of modern standards that are difficult to apply on small farms because of the high costs of their implementation. Rural tourism in Serbia is not at a satisfactory level of development, although there are all preconditions for its intensive development. Due to unfavorable political and economic position of Serbia, rural tourism has not encountered the support of its favorable development among its competitors. The authors have tried to point out a study for the attitude of the hosts as a service providers on the current status and problems faced in providing services in rural tourism. Investigated in 15 municipalities in Vojvodina (Northern Serbia), Southwestern Serbia and Southeastern Serbia, and in a total of 46 owners of small farms. Using the tests methods questionnaires and processing in SPSS, version 19.0, and analysis of the data, authors led to the confrmation of certain hypotheses of which started in the investigation.

Traditional values in the function of promotion of Sumadija and Pomoravlje as rural tourism destinations

Rural tourism and diversification of economic activities are now an integral part of sustainable development of rural areas and regions of Sumadija and Pomoravlje. Development of rural tourism improves the economic position and social activity of the population of rural areas. Sumadija and Pomoravlje region has significant natural and human resources for the development of rural tourism, which have not been adequately utilized. The preservation of authentic values of climate, especially of traditional crafts and gastronomy, can contribute to the development and recognition of the region as a new destination for rural tourism in Serbia. Traditional products due to their features, quality and heritage, can become a regional brand, and also promote the region as a unique destination of rural tourism. The aim of the paper is to explore the representation of traditional crafts, production of handicrafts and traditional cuisine in the region of Sumadija and Pomoravlje. The results of the research conducted point to a significant and under-utilized potential of traditional values in the development and promotion of the region as a rural tourism destination.

Tourist animation aimed at developing rural tourism in Serbia

As a tourist destination, Serbia has some real opportunities to put priority on the rural tourism in relation to other forms of tourism. Subsequently, there is a need to make the rural tourism offer more attractive to tourists. Among other things, that offer includes a tourist animation, which is currently gaining in significance, emerging directly in and aimed at tourism development of rural areas. Therefore this paper deals first with the role and importance of tourism related knowledge about developing rural areas, and particularly the knowledge on animation; then follows the tourist animation as an attractive quality of rural areas' tourist offer; as well as the importance and the role of the government and tourist animation in the development of rural tourism, with particular emphasis on the necessity to educate and train tourist animators, as experts and professionals at the academic level.

Potentials for the development of Goc mountain as a rural tourist destination

Rural areas represent a significant potential for tourism development. Rural tourism includes visits to rural areas by tourists who want to establish contact with nature, get to know the culture and the tradition of the place they stay at, and also participate in everyday activities of the rural population. Serbia is a country that has numerous villages and remarkable potentials for the development of rural tourism. Despite that, rural tourism in Serbia is not developed enough. A great example for this issue in our country is the mountain of Goč. Despite the attraction factor, tourism is not adequately developed there. The subject of this paper is the analysis of resources for tourism development on the mountain of Goč, with the aim to identify crucial potentials for rural tourism development. We will also try to give a special contribution with this paper in terms of directions for the future development of Goč as a destination of rural tourism. Rural tourism on Goč might contribute to the environment protection in rural areas and to the preservation of natural and cultural heritage, but it could also give a financial incentive for rural population to stay in their villages. Besides that, rural tourism would present a meaningful factor of sustainable village development. Special emphasis in the paper is placed on the cooperation between public and private sector, as a key factor in rural tourism development.

Competitiveness of destinations within the rural tourism cluster: Zlatar, Zlatibor

Cluster analysis is gaining increasing importance in the contemporary development of tourism. These are mostly areas that have similar tourist values. This paper presents the competitiveness of tourist destinations in the cluster of rural tourism Zlatar, Zlatibor, as defined in the Master Plan for Sustainable Development of Rural Tourism in Serbia. Having used AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process) criteria pairs have been first compared, and then the alternatives (villages of Zlatar and Zlatibor). The seven criteria used in this paper are the following: factors and attractors, accessibility and infrastructure, accommodation facilities, unemployment, experience in rural tourism, proximity of the marketplace, and seasonality. The AHP method has been used to determine relations between the influence factors and the dominance of one factor in relation to another. It has been noted a relatively weak dominance of the villages of Zlatibor, by all criteria, except when it comes to unemployment, which is dominated by the villages of Zlatar.

Gastronomic contents of rural tourism in Serbia

Agritourism terminology in etymological terms is found in agriculture, which means that the basis for the development of this form of tourism is agriculture. But agriculture is not just about traditional and extensive forms, but also in advanced to the intensive nature, such as developed combinat type. There is no dispute that rural tourism is linked, among others, to agricultural activities. By this logic, it belongs to agritourism. However, in this context it is a traditional form of farming. Their promotion as part of the tourist offer includes preservation of attractiveness. In addition, the fact that the activities of rural tourism does not only confine to agriculture, but within it, as an offering to include service-traditional trades, herbal, gastronomy, hunting and fishing, activities of ethnographic and social nature and of creative activity indicates that is a wider category of agricultural tourism.

Paradigms of rural tourism in Serbia in the function of village revitalisation

Rural regions in Serbia differ considerably in social, economic and demographic characteristics. Basic problems and trends almost all the rural regions share are migrations, poor diversification of economic activities, extensive agriculture, high level of unemployment, lack of employment possibilities, poor and underdeveloped infrastructure, low GDP per capita in comparison to the urban regions and unpolluted environment faced wit h potential threats . The subject of this paper is to point to the potentials of the rural tourism in Serbia with the aim of village revitalization, as well as its prevention from dying out. Also, the aim of the paper is to stress the fact that the rural tourism is a sustainable model of development and preservation of Serbian village and Serbian peasant from more aspects: economic, tourist, sociological, the spatial planning and ecological ones. Finally, the aim of the paper is to emphasize that it is possible to save village identity by its transformation into ethno village adopting the idea of European ethno villages. Rural tourism in Serbia must becomemainindustryand a generator of sleeping national economy. The main benefits belong to the rural households. Tourist agencies must be engaged in enabling a dialogue between their employees and local representatives. Clients must not only be observers but also critics in the spirit of trust and transparency. A full and true comprehension of the rural tourism role is realized through revealing habits of the host, traditional values rooted in the existing culture, establishment of relations amongst population at the local level. Serbia has favourable conditions for de veloping rural tourism. It has, in the first place, preserved nature, mild climate, clean air, unpolluted rivers and lakes, rich flora and fauna. At the moment, 11 regional centres (comprising 10-15 municipal offices) are engaged in collecting and spreading relevant information for respective target groups, as well as in strengthening of activities in the local communities. Serbia earns about 10 billion dinnars annually from the rural tourism or one-sixth of gross home product. With a better utilization of the potentials, the participation could be much higher. Rural tourism offers great opportunity for new work posts, but capacities should be used to a greater extent and th e problem of seasonality should also be overcome. All the key aims of the rural development in Serbia must be defined by the strategy: development of sustainable and efficient agricultural sector, standard of living of the population which lives from agriculture, creation of social and economic conditions in the rural regions, all of it within the National strategy of the rural development of the Republic of Serbia.

DEVELOPMENT OF RURAL TOURISM IN THE MUNICIPALITY OF GORNJI MILANOVAC-AN EXAMPLE FOR VILLAGES IN SERBIA

Rural tourism in Serbia is increasingly becoming one of the most important and profitable additional activities, while in the successful rural households it is their main economic activity. Beside the mountain town and resort Rudnik, several villages (Kostunici, Trudelj, Brusnica, Klaticevo, Leusici, Gojna Gora, ...) have acquired an image of distinctive tourist destinations. Their results confirm the leading position in the municipality of Gornji Milanovac in Moravicki districts as well as respectability in the rural tourism supply of Serbia. This paper presents the basic indicators of the rural tourism development in the municipality of Gornji Milanovac (number of registered households, categorized rooms, beds and guests; realized revenue), with special emphasis on the 2002-2009 period. Based on the researching results for the municipality of Gornji Milanovac, there is given an estimate of the potential impact of rural tourism in the Republic of Serbia.

Rural tourism in Serbia as a concept of development in undeveloped regions

Our aim is to define the importance of rural tourism in Serbia for the development of Serbian rural areas. This paper presents Serbia as a country of varied, well-preserved nature, with many attractive and representative elements, and a developmental priority oriented towards ecological and village tourism, which has strong chances on the picky international tourist market. As Serbian rural tourism is only beginning to develop, we identified its potentials for further development, but also pointed out the weaknesses which are now obstructing the growth of this, in many ways the most perspective form of tourism in Serbia

How to develop sustainable tourism in rural destinations in Serbia

The classical distinction between countries of tourist offer and countries of tourist demand has already been surpassed considering that many countries of tourist demand (USA, Germany, Great Britain ?) earn much more from tourism than the countries of tourist offer (Italy, Greece, Portugal ?). The changes in customers' behaviour are reflected through restructuring of tourist movements towards new destinations. What is essential in creating, promoting and marketing tourist destinations for the specific tourism forms development is the identification of all the positive and negative factors that influence the development of these destinations. Converting a potential into a tourist destination depends on many factors both in qualitative and in quantitative sense. Discovering an area of preserved environment that also possesses attractive motifs presents the beginning of the possible tourist destination creating. Further 'destiny' of a tourist destination depends on its planning and development intensity. Rural tourism is a significant component of integral and sustainable development and revitalization of the village, as well as a component that is missing in stimulating the local market development for agricultural and non-agricultural activities in the country, along with a special stimulation to employment. Serbia possesses remarkable natural resources and other potentials for the development of all forms of rural tourism. However, rural tourism in Serbia is an insufficiently organized field that is not being developed adequately to the possibilities available to it. That is why this paper wants to point out the potential opportunities for the development of rural tourism in Serbia through sustainable development and correct performance policy on both national and international tourist market.

Basic elements of rural tourism in Serbia

Our aim is to define the importance of rural tourism in Serbia for the development of Serbian rural spaces generally. This paper presents Serbia as a country of varied, well-preserved Nature, with many attractive and representative elements, and with a developmental priority oriented towards ecological and village tourism, which has a strong chance on the choosy international tourist market. As the Serbian village tourism is only beginning to develop, we identified, in this paper, the potentials for its further development, but we also pointed out the weaknesses which are now obstructing the growth of this, in many ways the most important, form of tourism, in Serbia.