ENOTOURISM - INSTRUMENT FOR PROMOTING RURAL DEVELOPMENT

Abstract

Enotourism, also called wine tourism, or oenotourism, it has as purpose the consume, purchasing, tasting at or near the source, it is considered a tool to promote the sustainable development of an area, its practice having major advantages for vine growers vineyards and grape processors, wine lovers by capitalizing natural and social attractions, contributing to the economic development of potential areas and integrating the wine tourism product as a brand in a certain destination. Using the researches carried out by different specialists, we conducted studies on a wine area, to classify this form of tourism according to the typology of the activities and to identify new types of wine tourism to be promoted as subtypes specific to wine tourism and to contribute to the sustainable development of a region from an economic-social point of view by promoting wine tourism products that in time may become brands of the region with such vocation.

Headnote

Abstract. Enotourism, also called wine tourism, or oenotourism, it has as purpose the consume, purchasing, tasting at or near the source, it is considered a tool to promote the sustainable development of an area, its practice having major advantages for vine growers vineyards and grape processors, wine lovers by capitalizing natural and social attractions, contributing to the economic development of potential areas and integrating the wine tourism product as a brand in a certain destination. Using the researches carried out by different specialists, we conducted studies on a wine area, to classify this form of tourism according to the typology of the activities and to identify new types of wine tourism to be promoted as subtypes specific to wine tourism and to contribute to the sustainable development of a region from an economic-social point of view by promoting wine tourism products that in time may become brands of the region with such vocation.

Keywords: sustainable development, wine tourism, typology, subtypes

INTRODUCTION

The power of cultural tourism with its subtypes lies in its ability to satisfy the desire of people, which travel, to know a certain place, in a way that has meaning for them, for these reasons it is considered that for the development and welfare of society, of nature must be promoted culture, cultural tourism, tourism and culture or cultural projects, transforming cultural activities niche tourism into a form of capital. The affirmation of cultural tourism is stimulated by the curiosity of the people, the increase of the level of education and civilization. [3,7,9,14,15]

In accordance with the specific values of the cultural heritage components, the forms of niche cultural tourism is characterized through: [4,6,11,13,18]

- Visiting the objectives of the historical heritage (archaeological remains, monuments, castles, religious buildings)

- Visiting museums, art galleries, agricultural sciences, parks, archaeological sites;

- Participation in events, shows, festivals, thematic tours, literary, gastronomic, oenological tourism;

- Industrial and technical tourism - located between the cultural and business ones (visiting economic objectives, dams, rural complexes).

Cultural tourism through its content and characteristics presents a number of advantages such as: independence in the face of a certain season, the possibility of sustainable rural development of an area thus ensuring a better use of natural and anthropic resources, wide accessibility for all categories of clientele. [16,17,19,20] Today, cultural tourism represents a modern form of vacation, a form in full access and a method of promoting rural development. [1,2,5,10,12]

MATERIAL AND METHOD

Enotourism and its subtypes can contribute to the sustainable development of rural areas, with positive effects for vine growers, and processors by introducing these destinations with oenological resources in the culturally historical tourism products, literary, ecumenical tourism. To highlight the area under study, we have proposed oenological activities that will contribute to the promotion of the area and the economic-social development by implementing new forms of cultural tourism: agrotourism, agrotourism on the farm, ecotourism in combination with subtypes of oenological tourism that will contribute to promote and consume local, regional products from the area and to develop the accommodation and service infrastructure of these products.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

Today Romania is one of the largest producers of wine with a high quality in the world, due to the climate and the soils that are suitable for the intensive culture of the vine, the technology of wine production, the trade, representing:

- a multi-billion dollar industry due to trade with this product;

- ascientific field through oenology courses for educational purposes;

- a research field, for the specialists in the field, with the purpose of adapting some varieties to the new culture technologies;

- a source of income due to oenological activities such as it is enotourism;

- a means of promoting some regions through wine auctions;

Enotourism, considered a tool for promoting rural development as a subtype of cultural tourism, has in the specialty literature several names: oenotourism, wine tourism, wine tourism, vinitourism.

Practicing this modern form of tourism has advantages for both vine growers, processors, wine producers and for the tourist destination. We present below the advantages and disadvantages of practicing this form of tourism, which is wine tourism for the main producers, processors, wine producers and the local population.

A. Vine growers:

Advantages:

1. direct sales possibilities;

2. selling in large parties;

3. consumer loyalty.

Disadvantages:

1.investments in the presentation units;

2. additional costs with tasting;

3. small quantities of product sold.

B. Processors

Advantages:

1. possibilities of presenting the new assortments;

2. customer loyalty relationships;

3. diversification of consumers;

4. diversification of production according to market trends. Disadvantages:

1. risk of contamination due to the large flow of tourists;

2. opportunity costs;

3. investments in the tasting rooms;

C. Enotourists

Advantages:

1. direct communication with growers, processors;

2. education in the art of wine;

3. attractive prices for wine producers;

4. special experiences.

Disadvantages:

1. high prices for presentations, tastings;

2. transport requests;

3. high prices for accommodation services.

D.Local population:

Advantages:

1. superior use of the rural landscape;

2. multiplier effect of wine tourism on the sustainable development of the destination;

3. the integration of the tourist product into a historical, natural cultural circuit;

4. economic development of rural localities;

5. promoting the area as a tourist destination.

Disadvantages:

1. benefits for tour operators;

2. environmental problems through large flows of wine producers;

3. the danger of developing mass tourism.

According to the typology of the consumers of such forms of tourism, the wine tourism can be classified according to:

- the activity carried out: vititourism, vinitourism, vitivinitourism, gastovinitourism;

- area of activity: urban enotourism, rural enotourism;

- the purpose of the trip: educational enotourism, fun enotourism, recreational-fun enotourism, social enotourism, scientific enotourism;

- the season when visiting is made: autumn enotourism, enofestival, educational enotourism for educational purposes for pupils and students from high schools.

Taking into account these criteria and the opinions of some authors from the fieldwe propose a classification of wine regions from Arad County in order to propose new subtypes of enotourism for implementation:

- emerging wine areas - characterized by anthropic and natural cultural resources, recently appeared and included in: the tour of the cities of Ineu, Pincota, Siria, Lipova, Soimus, literary enotourism - following the characters from Ioan Slavici's work with the knowledge of the cultivated wine varieties from the area, historical cultural tourism - personalities who settled in Lipova, the medieval Arad with the meal at a rural boarding house and the service of local wines Mustosa of Maderat, ecumenical pilgrimage tourism at the Feredeu Monastery or the Maria Radna Monastery;

- growing wine areas, where new vineyard plantations have been made, characterized by landscapes, fortresses, where there are possibilities to purchase wines or tasting vines;

- mature wine areas - Barasca with wine cellar and tasting possibilities, accommodation with heritage value located on the Wine Road;

- wine areas during the rejuvenation period - Ghioroc-Minis

For the implementation of new subtypes of enotourism, it is necessary to know the profile of enotourists from the perspective of wine producers, whose main purpose is to maximize their sales profits through customer loyalty and from the perspective of tourism operators. Establishing the profile of enotourists can be done from the following perspectives:

- taking in consideration the demographic category: education, family, environment of origin, material situation, age;

- taking in consideration the psychological profile: attitudes, lifestyle and values.

Other researchers classify enotourists in terms of profile as couples without children and tourists with higher education, high incomes and well-defined professions but for the producers they are:

- accidental tourists who just want to taste and nothing else;

- sophisticated drinkers, eager for information;

- tourists who do not claim to have oenological knowledge;

According to the lifestyle wine producers can be:

- tourists who do not claim to have oenological knowledge.

According to the lifestyle enotourists can be:

- newcomers who like wine and consider this opportunity to cement their friendships, are eager for knowledge, education;

- professionists who have knowledge about wine and can discuss details with growers and processors, having the ability to analyze the organoleptic properties of the wine, its qualities and defects;

- amateurs - they are attracted to wines but know only the strictly necessary about wine;

- wine drinkers - visit wineries organized in groups, consume and buy large quantities for home.

After the motivation, the enotourists were classified in 4 categories: very interested, interested, with limited interest and disinterested. We find that the 3 profiles categories of enotourists according to education overlap over the categories identified above:

- wine lovers equally very interested enotourits;

- interested enotourits equally interested to accumulate knowledge about wine, to taste;

- curious enotourits equal to the neophyte who like wine, want to train themselves, attend courses, read and document themselves about wine.

Recent research from the field identifies four segments regarding the profile of typical enotourists:

- with high self-congruity - delighted, happy, friendly, sociable;

- low self-congruity - businessman, high financial level;

- very involved - knowledgeable about wine, passionate about wine, eager to know;

- little involved - funny, good income, businessman, old man.

We have also identified other reasons why tourists visit the study area, these being:

- cultural historical: tour of the cities of Ineu, Pâncota, Syria, Lipova, Soimuş;

- ecumenical: Feredeu Monasteries, Maria Radna;

- Islamic: the place of some battles with the Turks, Lipova Bazaar;

- literary - in the footsteps of Slavici, noble families on the Mures Valley;

- oenological, knowledge of old cellars from Minis;

- rural - experiences in the vineyard area;

- agrotourism;

- gastronomy - to learn how to combine wine with different dishes;

- ecotourism - Lunca Muresului Natural Park;

- romance - to enjoy the wine culture in this part of Zarand;

- health - the positive effects of wine on health;

- events: wine festivals, grape picking.

For the implementation of new subtypes of enotourism we propose some activities that will contribute to the successful promotion of these subtypes specific to enotourism and to contribute to the sustainable development of the rural area there where are these farms that produce and process grapes. As specific activities we propose for implementation:

- dinner at an agrotourist farm and serving local wine:

- 1dinner in local, regional wine cellars with local wine tastings;

- tasting of wines on the horizontal from different wineries but from the same year;

- vertical wine tasting - wine tasting from the same winery and from different years;

hiking in the vineyard area;

- participation at grape picking;

- oenology courses;

- walking through the vine;

- tour of the cellars.

CONCLUSIONS

Enotourism whose purpose is, the tasting, consumption or purchase of wine is considered to be one of the main tools for promoting sustainable rural development, its practice having major advantages for both vine growers and processors, enotourists and last but not least for the tourist destinations, which being introduced in the tourist packages will be able to be promoted as authentic rural products and brands.

Enotourism can be explored as a form of wine consumer behavior, those interested preferring the so-called wines as is the one presented by us in combination with other subtypes of historical cultural tourism, the main locations such as wine cellars offer either horizontal but also vertical tastings and where the local gastronomic products are promoted according to the variety of wine offered.

Enotourists visiting this rural area fall into the following profiles: with high self-congruity, low self-congruity, very involved and little involved, also having other reasons for visiting these wine areas with ancient and natural cultural resources such as the subtypes of historical cultural tourism with its forms for recreation and leisure.

Sidebar

NOTES ON THE AUTORS

Cornelia PETROMAN, Professor at the Banat's University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine "King Michael I of Romania" from Timisoara, Faculty of Management and Rural Tourism, Calea Aradului, 119, Timisoara, Romania.

Cipriana SAVA, Associate Professor at the Faculty of Management in Tourism and Commerce Timişoara, „Dimitrie Cantemir" Christian University. Email: [email protected]. She holds a PhD. in Management and is the author of a large number of books, articles and studies in the field of tourism, regional and rural development. Cipriana Sava is alsoa member in „Asociaţia Româna de Ştiinţe Regionale" (ARSR), in the „European Regional Science Association" (E.R.S.A.), in the „Science Association International" (RSAI) and in the "Romanian Association of Tourism Journalists" (AJIR).

Loredana VĂDUVA - Assistant at the Banat's University of Aricultural Sciences and Veterinary of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine "King Michael I of Romania" from Timisoara, Faculty Management and Rural Tourism, Calea Aradului, 119, Timisoara, Romania.

Diana MARIN - Lecturer at the Banat's University of Aricultural Sciences and Veterinary of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine "King Michael I of Romania" from Timisoara, Faculty of Management and Rural Tourism, Calea Aradului, 119, Timisoara, Romania.

Ioan PETROMAN, Professor at the Banat's University of Aricultural Sciences and Veterinary of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine "King Michael I of Romania" from Timisoara, Faculty of Management and Rural Tourism, Calea Aradului, 119, Timisoara, Romania

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