Impact of agriculture on rural tourism: a hedonic pricing approach

The increased awareness of farmers' role in the maintenance of rural landscapes may contribute to a reassessment of the place of agriculture in society. In this paper, we look at how this role, in relation to landscape, is valued by rural tourists or, in other words, whether it is a response to a societal demand, as is argued by defenders of multifunctional agriculture. The results from a hedonic pricing analysis indicate that landscape features associated with agricultural activities (such as meadows and grazing cattle) positively influence the demand for rural tourism and have a positive impact on the price tourists are willing to pay for rural accommodation. This is also illustrated by the adverse impact of perceived negative externalities from agricultural production (such as intensive maize cultivation) on this price.