The lack of internet access in most rural areas has become a challenge worldwide. The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted trends such as teleworking and e-commerce, meaning an opportunity for the local economy of these areas, but with serious difficulties in carrying it out. This paper aims to detect this lack of internet in inland areas of the region of Valencia through local actors, in order to identify clear priorities and real needs through an explorative and replicable approach based on agglomerative hierarchical clustering (AHC). The main findings suggest that there are different patterns in the rural internet access related to adequate infrastructure and planned actions by local councils. In this way, a multitude of contextual elements have emerged that influence the importance of efficient access to the internet in rural areas. It is essential to know the real needs and demands of the population before implementing plans and programs that may not be relevant for the actors involved in territorial development.

This paper presents a comprehensive view of the empirical research findings concerning rurban relationships in different European countries (Finland, France, Hungary, the Netherlands and Spain), through two types of rurban territories: those that are placed close to (or included in) a metropolitan area and those that are close to (and influenced by) an important tourist area or place. Its main aim is to show the diversity of European experiences with regard to urban pressure in this type of areas, highlighting the socio-economic and institutional contexts in explaining similarities and differences between five countries. The results will review the various meanings of ‘rural’ and ‘rurality’ in different European contexts and how the study areas combine the characteristics of a rural and an urban area. Moreover, we will see that urban pressure is not perceived as a negative process by many but, rather, the opposite. Further, the multi-functionality of rural areas has often implied an excessive focus on new external urban demands in detriment of enhancing other traditional functions. Given these situations, institutions do not always provide efficient responses to changing rurban areas.