Romanian Rural Tourism(Marin Andreea Gabriela)

2. Substantial changes in the Romanian countryside accompanied by the need for more robust economic
activities have caused some families to turn to tourism as an economic diversification strategy. A
qualitative study of selected rural tourism entrepreneurs indicates positive experiences, both
economically and in other aspects of their lives. However, the development of rural tourism is highly
uneven spatially and the Romanian Government should act more incisively to support families
establishing guesthouses.

3. Today’s Romanian tourists
do not seem to clearly
differentiate one type of
accommodation facility
from another. Given this,
the hospitality services
providers either
intentionally or by mistake
promote their units as a
different type than the
one they are registered
and classified under.
Perhaps this is why
boarding houses or villas
are promoted online as
hotels or why concrete
villas replace rural
boarding houses and
invade and disrupt rural
landscapes.

4. Tourism sector has a great economic potential and Romanian North East region local
economy may greatly benefit from it. Rural tourism - as a valuable promoter of Romanian
traditions, values and beauty is an important, not enough exploited asset. Nonetheless, an
uncontrolled tourism development would produce a negative impact on the local
environment and society.

5. Sustainability is a
key dimension that
needs to be taken
into account by the
growth prospects of
the regions, but all
local development
strategies must
follow and act
within the
framework of
national policies
and strategies. In
this context, we like
to analyse the
regional strategies
from the point of
view of their long
term sustainability.

6. Romania is a country with a huge potential regarding everything that links to travels, natural
environments, cultural heritage. Is necessary to identify and analyze the aspects that are
important in promoting rural tourism in the case of Romania, according to the preferences of
tourists of different nationalities. The experts in tourism industry need to create attractive
offers that include rural destinations and, most of all, they need to promote in an adequate
manner all this offers, taking into consideration the characteristics of different types of
tourists.

7. Regarding the rural
development we identified
that important measures
were planned in The
National Strategy on
Sustainable Development.
This gives priorities to
investments in
infrastructure (irrigation),
the development of green
tourism, the creation of
family farms of an "optimal
size" (between 50 and 100
ha) and securing the food
supply by developing
agricultural production and
re-launching industrial
sectors related to
agriculture such as farming
machinery. Under these
circumstances it is obviously
why that rural tourism
became an important
strategy for development
both rural regions and
tourism economy.

8. The most important issues related to the capacity of Romanian tourism in the international
market in the last 6 years are the growth trend of the foreign tourists' arrivals and the high rate
of increasing foreigners in the rural tourism, the annual average is around 34%.

9. From the great diversity
of Romanian tourist
potential, which, in time,
imposed particular forms
of rural tourism, we must
concentrate on those
specific to the Romanian
Carpathian space. If,
overall, the Carpathians,
by virtue of their size,
form an essential part of
Europe's landscape, the
Romanian Carpathian
land distinguishes itself
through a high density in
population which, in
time, functioned to
render a vast array of
cultural possibilities.

10. Romania is priding itself to hold an important part of the worldwide cultural heritage,
exemplified by the painted monasteries in Bucovina, the Dacian fortresses in the Orastie
Mountains, the fortified churches in Transylvania, the fortified town of Sighisoara, etc.