What is Rural Tourism?
Any form of tourism that showcases the rural life, art, culture and heritage at rural locations, thereby benefiting the local community economically and socially, as well as enabling interaction between the tourists and the local community for a more enriching tourism experience can be termed as rural tourism. Rural tourism is essentially any activity which takes place in the countryside. It is multi-faceted and may entail farm or agricultural tourism and is experience oriented. The locations are predominantly in natural environments; they mesh with seasonality and local events and are based on preservation of culture, heritage and traditions. Endogenous Tourism: A new initiative to strengthen rural livelihoods. It also aims to promote new and innovative approaches to build livelihood opportunities in rural areas through community action. Aptly named the Endogenous Tourism Project, its focus, with the Rural Tourism Scheme, is to develop the culture, craft and sustainable dimensions of