2019 Annual Meeting of the Association of American Geographers (

Abstract:

Rural tourism is a kind of

tourism that takes its source from nature. It has been formed as an alternative

of mass tourism and it protects nature and local customs. Rural tourism, which

is seen as an important tool to improve rural people, provides additional

income for local people, diminishes migration from rural to urban, and makes

great contribution to environmental consciousness in rural areas. Turkey is

very rich in rural tourism potential. The richness of landscapes, cultural and

historical features, and the diversity of gastronomic values allowed the

formation of numerous rural tourism areas. Darende can be one of them.<o:p></o:p>

Darende is a district of Malatya and located in the

west of it. The most important economic activity of Darende is agriculture;

however, since the irrigable areas are rare and people cannot receive enough

income from agriculture, they migrate from Darende. Rural tourism which offers

extra income to local people is an important source of income.<o:p></o:p>

In this study, the importance, effects, and features

of rural tourism were focused on and the natural, cultural and historical

tourist attractions in Darende were explained. Attitudes of the people in

Darende to rural tourism were measured using a questionnaire and some

suggestions were provided for the development of rural tourism of Darende. <o:p></o:p>

Keywords: Rural Tourism, Darende, The Potential of Darende’s Rural Tourism, Views

of the Residents in Darende about Rural Tourism<o:p></o:p>