Benefits deriving from tourism development must be balanced against potential negative effects.

Jobs in the travel and tourism industry are frequently low-paying and seasonal and often offer

limited benefits. In some cases, particularly where tourism strategies are ineffectual, local

residents may have to pay for tourism marketing and infrastructure through higher taxes.

Tourism can also increase demand for land in rural areas, which may inflate real estate prices,

potentially putting the cost of housing beyond the reach of the average local resident. This is the

case for some amenity-rich tourism destinations (particularly in the West) experiencing growth

in recent years stemming from recreation-based activities (Brown and Fazzone, 1998). Tourism

may directly lead to unsightly sprawl in rural areas by creating a demand for development.

Other negative side effects include potentially higher rates of crime and greater demand for local

services, such as police and fire protection and sanitation services, which can be expensive to

provide. Also, tourism can risk changing the rural “sense of place” for some communities.

Increased crowding and traffic congestion may also result with an influx of tourists into an area.

Greater demand for local arts and crafts can also potentially lead to a lowering of the quality of

these products. Finally, tourism risks degrading natural resources in rural areas unless

Rural America is a popular tourist destination. According to a recent study, nearly two-thirds of

all adults in the Nation, or 87 million individuals, have taken a trip to a rural destination within

the past three years (Travel Industry Association of America, 2001a). Almost nine out of ten of

these trips were for leisure purposes. Overall, the travel industry is big business in America.

Travel expenditures within the U.S. totaled nearly $564 billion in 2000, making the travel and

tourism industry the third largest in the Nation (after health services and business services), and

accounting for total direct employment of over 7.8 million (Travel Industry Association of

America, 2001b).

Tourism has many potential benefits for rural areas (Frederick, 1992). Tourism can be an

important source of jobs for nonmetro communities, especially for those that are economically

underdeveloped. Because jobs in the tourist industry often do not require advanced training,

local residents with few skills can readily work as food servers, retail clerks, and hospitality

workers. Tourism also not only offers business opportunities to local residents, but it can serve

as a vehicle for marketing a place to potential resid

Summary

other studies stress the positive effects that tourism can bring to quality of life issues, including a greater “sense of place” for rural residents, an upgrading of local cultural facilities, or anenhancement of regional conservation efforts. Frequent mention is made of different strategies

employed in rural tourism, including heritage tourism, nature-based tourism/ecotourism, and

agritourism.

Other studies caution that effective rural tourism requires careful planning and development and

Peru destinations

Cusco Tours

typically employs well thought-out marketing approaches. Even well-designed tourism

areas, especially those that are more isolated or more sparsely populated, lack the resources

required to establish a successful tourism program

Paquetes en Peru

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