Rural tourism - is a young and promising field of activities in the Russian context. For some areas this type of activity can serve as a starting point for regional development after the adverse reforms of the 1990s. Rural tourism is special because tourists come to rural areas not only for rest and to become familiar with local culture, but also for exploring local tourist resources, for participation in various traditional events and with other purposes. Rural tourism contributes to the development of the territory as a whole, as it allows to solve a number of existing problems in rural areas and create jobs for local population by providing for visiting guests comprehensive services in the forms of accommodation, recreational facilities, food, excursions, acquiring specific knowledge and skills. The article discusses the concept of "rural tourism" and "agrotourism", defined the differences and similarities of these concepts. Rural tourism has a huge resource potential and many different forms and it is therefore defined as agrotourism, farm tourism, sports tourism, business tourism, cultural tourism, and others. Some of these concepts are synonymous with rural tourism, others represent various forms of rural tourism, as they have the same potential. Rural tourism can be called "multi-faceted" tourism because it has many different forms of manifestation.
rural, tourism, agrotourism, rural tourism potential
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