With wildness and nature as its strength, Tukums municipality is a potential destination for rural trips. However, tourism operators have faced challenges in improving rural services and activities for customers. Today’s blog will mention some factors hindering the development of rural tourism in this region.
Seasonality in tourism
Like most neighboring countries and regions, the travel period lasts from May to September, with July and August being the peak season (Des Clics Nomades SAS 2023). According to Central Statistics Bureau of Latvia (2023), the highest number of nights spent in hotels and other tourist accommodation establishments was 17,564 in August 2022, a huge difference from 974 in January of the same year. Apparently, Tukums rural tourism is very much dependent on the weather as tourists tend to visit the region in summer – the warmest season in Latvia.
Limited budget
Visitors will not return to a destination if they feel bored with their current experiences. Rural tourism businesses are more aware of this issue than anyone else. Services and products must be innovated to attract customers, however, changing is not that simple. Budget shortage is the clearest distinction between imagination and reality. During the meeting with the Tourist Information Center in Tukums (2023), it has been stated that they need to consider more carefully to decide which aspects to innovate or build on because there is not enough funding.
Language barriers
During my trip, I encountered dozens of signs that were only in Latvian. Signs in English still exist, but in tourist locations where people often visit. When it comes to more remote destinations – the truly rural areas, I could barely even see the sign, let alone understand it. Besides, the main target market of micro to small-sized rural businesses is locals, thus most of them do not speak English and tourists cannot always find an interpreter. Obviously, the lack of linguistic diversity may cause difficulties for visitors to the region and has a high risk of ruining their experience.
What do you think about these challenges of rural tourism in Tukums region? Are there any other obstacles you would like to mention? Let me know by leaving a comment!
You can read my other blogs here: pre-experience, on-site experience.
Sources
Photos are taken by Quyen (July) Le.
Des Clics Nomades SAS 2023. Best time to go to Tukums. Accessed on 19 October 2023 https://www.whereandwhen.net/when/europe/latvia/tukums/
Central Statistics Bureau of Latvia 2023. Hotels and other tourist accommodation establishments in regions, State cities and municipalities. Accessed 19 October 2023 https://data.stat.gov.lv/pxweb/en/OSP_PUB/START__NOZ__TU__TUV/TUV050m/table/tableViewLayout1/
Tourism Information Centre 2023.