Tourism and rural development: the mountain districts of Andalusia, Spain

Abstract

Studies of tourism in southern European countries have centred on the spectacular rise of international coastal tourism. Rural tourism has taken the form of a mass summer migration both of returning emigrants and of city dwellers, the latter favouring upland areas to escape summer heat. Enquiries were made in the town halls of 150 municipalities in eight upland areas of Andalusia and three types of rural tourism were identified. Peripheral tourism, overwhelmingly domestic in character, is correlated significantly with distance from large cities, and three distinct concentric zones were noted, in which new second homes, old second homes and rented accommodation predominate with increasing distance from the city. Non-peripheral tourism evolves in a more concentrated manner in areas remote from large cities; it is related much more strongly to the inherent characteristics of the region. Coastal hinterland tourism reflects characteristics of both the above types. Dynamic models of each type are developed by simulating the outward diffusion of tourism zones from a city or tourism nucleus. Interviews were also held with 259 inhabitants in 19 municipalities. All these villages have an uneconomic, declining agricultural base, and tourism was seen locally as the greatest hope for the future. However, there is little evidence to suggest that tourism has benefitted the rural economy; peripheral tourism in particular can be seen as the expansion of 'urban colonialism', not rational regional development. Interviews with 25 second home owners near Seville revealed only superficial contact with the rural economy. Given the certainty of a continued rise in rural tourism demand, the need for planning is highlighted. Specific tourism growth centres and conservation areas are suggested, as well as ways of combining tourism, agriculture and industry; however, the key to successful rural development lies in encouraging local initiative and regional identity.