The COVID-19 pandemic has had strong impact on the tourism market. As a result of the lockdown and the closing of borders, tourist traffic came to an abrupt halt. Agritourism is an important way of diversifying agriculture and rural areas. In addition, it is a part of the idea of sustainable and multifunctional agriculture. It makes it possible to use production resources in the countryside and constitutes an additional source of income for both farmers and the local community. The aim of the paper was to present the results of survey research concerning the tourist plans of the Polish people in the era of the COVID-19 pandemic, in particular plans to spend holidays on agritourism farms. The study confirmed that according to Polish respondents, holidays in the country, spent on agritourism farms, were a good choice in the era of the COVID-19 pandemic. The respondents expect agritourism providers to take specific actions, i.e., disinfect communal rooms, make hand sanitizers available, as well as limit the maximum number of people allowed on the farm and in open-access rooms, in order to ensure safety during their stay. The article constitutes a contribution to the evolving literature on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the development of the tourism sector.
Agriculture, food and tourism is combined into offering tourist products in rural areas. The development of local activities combining traditional food and tourism becomes an investment for the future with both the concept of sustainable gastronomy and agriculture sustainability, and helps in the development of local entrepreneurship in rural areas. The European Union has introduced provisions for the protection of traditional and regional food that can be used to create a variety of tourist products. Currently, tourists are looking for unique local products. More and more people travel because of culinary motifs, and local products, dishes and local processors can become an attraction in these places. This paper presents the idea of ‘The Best Pork of Wielkopolska’ culinary trail, which is based on a local product from Wielkopolska, in Poland—the native breed of pig—the Złotnicka White pig. The rapid development of culinary tourism means that tourists are looking for offers in this area. There are many cooking-related products available in the tourism market, one of which is the culinary trail. Food becomes one of the advantages of places where tourism related to the culture of the region develops. Based on cultural heritage, a variety of tourist products can be created, e.g., culinary trails combining agriculture and food produced in this area with tourism.
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a strong impact on the tourism market worldwide. The aim of the paper was to present the tourism plans of Poles during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research conducted showed that the prevailing pandemic had a significant impact on touristic travel plans. However, the vast majority (over 75%) of the respondents plan at least one tourist trip, which will last from 5 to 7 days. During a tourist trip, the respondents plan to use different forms of accommodation. They considered their own cottage /second house and camping site to be the safest facilities, while hotels or resorts were indicated as the least safe facilities. In order to ensure safety during the stay, the respondents expect specific actions to be taken by the operators of the accommodation facilities, i.e.: availability of hand sanitizers, disinfection of rooms and generally available equipment in the facility as well as compliance with restrictions concerning social distance and the wearing of masks. This article contributes to the evolving literature on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on development of tourism sector.
This paper discusses the economic benefits of agritourism development, a topic in need of further research. Understanding the benefits of agritourism is especially important but empirical research on this matter remains limited. The results reported are based on a survey conducted among agritourism providers in Wielkopolskie Voivodeship, Poland. The findings show that agritourism can bring several economic benefits. It was found that the average income from agritourism accounted for about one-third of the overall household income of farmers. Moreover, food service is an important factor in the success of agritourism as it brings extra money to farmers. This research also identified an important relationship between the income obtained from agritourism activities only with the income obtained by providing meals to agritourists.
This article aims to identify the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the perception of the risk of travel and travel behaviour by Poles. The study was conducted using the survey method and the CAWI technique and was carried out in January 2021. The final research sample consisted of 509 respondents. Tourism has always been exposed to various threats: natural disasters, terrorism, etc. In such cases, tourists choose a different, safe direction. However, in 2020, tourism found itself facing a crisis that brought it to a complete stop worldwide. The spread of the COVID-19 virus and safety concerns, as well as global travel restrictions, led to a change in travel during this time. The results show that the respondents resigned especially from going abroad for security reasons, choosing to rather stay in the country and other places that, from their point of view, were safer places to rest.
Animals are an integral part of human life. Currently, they constitute a relevant factor contributing to the tourist experiences of individuals travelling for tourist purposes. Domestic (farm) animals constitute a tourist attraction, are a source of income for individuals running agritourism farms, and render the tourists’ stay in rural areas more attractive. It is important to maintain the welfare of livestock based on principles of sustainability. The authors conducted research among agritourism providers in Wielkopolska Voivodeship. The aim of the survey was to determine whether agritourism farms keep livestock, what species they are, and whether they are important in building an agritourism product and what the prospects are for using animals in agritourism. A questionnaire was used for the study. The use of a variety of animal species facilitates the maintenance of biodiversity on the farm. Our research shows that 57.3% of the analysed agritourism providers included animals. Additionally, we discovered that the presence of livestock acts as a magnet that draws more tourists towards the individuals running agritourism farms and thus causes them to obtain higher profit from the agritourism business. According to the surveyed individuals, the most influential reason for the absence of livestock on their farms was the lack of financial resources and conditions to provide the animals with proper maintenance. Such findings may prompt the introduction of livestock as a tourist attraction in agritourism in other regions.