Studies & Degrees in Agrotourism

Choose where you would like to study Agrotourism:

Agrotourism is very similar to ecotourism, except that the concentration is on rural, rather than natural landscape. Rural culture is the main attraction in agrotourism, which often involves taking part in the daily activities of farmers, fishermen, and so on.

If you would like to become involved in agrotourism (or agritourism), you would be responsible either for finding appropriate destinations for tourists to experience this form of leisure travel, plan their flight, or bus route, or guide a group of tourists on a trip of exploring rural culture. Or, you can be the destination itself. As agrotourism is aiming to enhance the development and preservation of rural areas, there are a lot of government and EU programs supporting individuals and families to get involved in agrotourism. In this case, you would be responsible to meet and accommodate guests, organize activities that are common to rural living, as well as entertain and educate guests on the culture and habits of the area they are visiting.

Personal Qualities

To be involved in agrotourism, you should definitely have a genuine interest in the exploration, development, and preservation of rural areas. If you are interested in developing a business of your own, you have to really enjoy rural life and all the activities involved with it. Here are other personal qualities that would definitely be useful:

• Open and welcoming nature, taking joy in talking and communicating with people
• Excellent organizational and time-planning skills
• Ability to work under pressure and think quick if conflict arises
• Creativity
• Dynamic, well-fit individual

Study Options

Study options vary by choice of profession. If you aim to work for a travel agency, simply helping people organize and plan their rural trip, you would not be required to undertake much official training. It is very likely that you could undertake some on-the-job training, which combined with excellent communication skills and good literacy would be more than enough to practice the profession.

On the other hand, if you are considering to organize your own tourism business, a degree in tourism management or similar, would surely help. Such a degree will equip you with the knowledge and skills of how to plan, organize, and manage all aspects of the business; with the rising popularity of agrotourism, some universities may even offer a subject, a course, or even some experience, related to this field.

Career Options

The career options have already been discussed in the study perspectives, but to elaborate, we can mention that some travel agencies can have whole departments dedicated to agrotourism. There even are agencies, specializing in this particular area. You can either start a career by finding employment in such an agency, or, if you feel qualified enough, you can open an agency of your own. This will involve forming relationship with various agrotourism destinations, liaising with owners and customers, and making sure you meet both sides’ expectations.

Or, you can develop your own agrotourism destination, planning activities, day and night entertainment for guests, planning traditional meals, and ensuring comfortable accommodation. For this option, you can definitely research government and EU programs offering sponsorship and loans.