CC BY
4Ágnes Virág
RURAL DEVELOPMENT TROUGH THE TOURISM IN TOKAJ WINE REGION IN HUNGARY
A gricultural
Bulletin of Stavropol Regi
UDK 63:338.48(439)
Stavropol Region
= № 1(21)/1 Supplement, 2016
Abstract
The European Union lays an emphasis on catching up of disadvantaged rural areas and within that focuses the endogenous resources in improvements. The economic diversity is a main priority and tourism is one of the most important elements of it. In the agricultural areas tourism may be a tool for the revival and development. If a well-structured organization coordinates the tourist and the economic participants' interests, assesses the opportunities in rural areas, then a complex social, economic growth may begin in the disadvantaged rural regions as well. In Hungary, one of the most important goals of the National Tourism Development Strategy (2005-2013) was to achieve the creation and operation of an institutional
structure based on destination management. In recent years, several local and micro-regional tourism destination management organizations were established to bring together participants in tourist areas. The main task of these organizations is to offer valuable experience for tourists and to help the economic, social and environmental development of the rural regions, too. In my study I provide a short overview of Hungarian tourism destination management system. After that I examine the wider rural development role of tourism destination management organizations in Tokaj wine region.
Key words: tourism, rural development, destination management organization, Tokaj wine region.
Agnes Virag -
Ph.D. Student, Doctoral School of Regional Sciences, Szent Istvan University, Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences, Hungary, Godollo (2100), Pater K. st. 1. E-mail: virag.agnes@gtk.szie.hu
Discussion
Stakeholders of tourism have to face a number of challenges including competitiveness, quality requirements, infrastructural requirements and changes in tourism trends. Service providers need to have a versatile but unique offer on the global market, if they are to persuade the tourists to choose attractions of a particular area. Also, there are new quality demands from tourists to be met. Special emphasis is to be given to the development of tourism infrastructure. Furthermore, trends have to be taken into consideration because needs of present day tourists can only be met by offering complex programs and tourism experiences (Virág, 2014).
The participant of tourism try to increase the number of guests, guest nights, incomes and accommodations, but is not enough, it is necessary to focus on restructuring the tourism institutional system in accordance with needs of our age. Creation of a Tourism Destination Management (TDM) system which guarantees that tourism is controlled and managed by competent professionals and local communities can be an adequate answer to these challenges (Nagy - Virág, 2014).
In the early 2000s Tourism Destination Management appeared among the tourism development opportunities in Hungary. Basic principles of the bottom-up approach system are partnership, professionalism and support of financial background (Lengyel, 2008).
The one most important advantages of development concept is that stakeholders may get a role in the future shaping of the tourism sector. In Hungary, the creation of TDM system received increasingly bigger attention, the new institution structure was/
is built by the cooperation of tourism professions and stakeholders in the last years. There are some domestic examples which show that Hungarian tourism is going to the right direction.
The word, destination has latin origin and from tourism point of view it can be interpreted as the (ordained) end-point of a journey. The destination can be a country, a city, a village or a wine region. The destination is an essential, definable territorial unit in which different participants work together in order to achieve a more successful tourism (Buhalis, 2000). Tourism destination management is a long term, voluntary and organized co-operation of partners (local governments, professional and civilian organizations, businesses) who manage the products and services of the destination as a complex unit with the aim to optimize experiences of tourists and effects resulting in tourism activities taking into account criteria of sustainability (Víg, 2010). The aim is to achieve sustainable and competitive tourism.
The TDM system is a hierarchically structured organizational unit, its base is the community-based organizations. The micro-regional alliances unite the local organizations. The regional organizations are made of micro-regional alliances. The peak of the system is the national organization. The TDM system consists of different levels of organizations (TDMO) (Lengyel, 2008).
In Hungary there are 80 local, 6 micro-regional, 1 regional and 1 national destination management organizations (Government portal, 2015). The Hungarian TDM system was built gradually; the institutional reorganization receives increasingly bigger attention. The development of tourism receives in-
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creasingly bigger attention in National Development Concept and National Area Development Concept 2014-2020, the main aim of concept is the formation of total TDM system, the creation of accurate legal and law regulation. The TDM organizations have to face to several challenges, but the structure based on the partnership shows a positive future vision.
National TDMO
Microregional
TDMO 1 TDMO Local TDMO I TDMO
TDMO
Figure 1 - Structure of TDM system in Hungary.
Source: Own editing, 2013.
In my research I tried to And the answer to how operate the destination management organizations in Tokaj wine region, I examined what kind of the experiences are in organizations, what kind of cooperation is in a closed wine region and how can these organizations contribute to the complex development of this rural area in the future. In order to I get to know the extensive tourist life of this region I analyzed some literary and professional materials and I used qualitative research. I made some structured depth interviews with tourist participants and representatives of rural economic organizations in Tokaj wine region. The questions were directed first I inquired about the development of tourism services, the cooperation, and the institutional structure in the region. Finally, I asked about the work and the rural economy role of the destination management organizations. The interviewers brought to my attention to lots of useful information, I analyzed these conversations.
Results
In the 1990's came to the fore the tourist value of agricultural land, the pasture, the arable land, the orchards and the vineyards raise the value of the countryside. Agricultural work is not only useful for food production; there are other values that promote the development of rural areas (Fodor-Gemma, 2011). The main agricultural products of the wine regions are the grapes and wines, which can be treated prominent tourist attraction as well. The grapes and wines are special endogenous resources, numerous additional services connected to them, which may ensure a complex experience for tourists (Forman, 2010). The Tokaj wine region is a multifunctional agricultural area where the sight of the vast vineyards, the grape and wine traditions and services expects the tourist.
The one of the most famous wine regions of Hungary is the Tokaj wine region, which encompasses 27 settlements in the north-eastern part of Hungary (Figure 1.). The nearly 6,000 acres of wine region is located at the foot of the Zemplén Mountains. The microclimate, soil conditions, the rivers, the grape varieties and the presence of noble mold are appropriate for the quality wine production. The thousand-year history of viticulture and onological culture provides a very good basis for tourism. The Tokaj wine region was declared the world's first controlled wine region in 1737, to which was accompanied by strict legislation, thus allowed to retain the traditions of grape production in original form. The Tokaj wine region was declared World Heritage Site by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in 2002 which further increased the tourist value of the region (Nagy, 2014).
Hungarian grape production, wine consumption and wine tourism has undergone major changes in the last years. Parallel to the increase of wine consumption every wine region increasingly comes to the fore the endeavors to meet the demand for services which related to wine tourism. TDM organizations may be the main leader of the complex development in wine regions, may coordinate the marketing and tender activities and may help the development in rural areas.
There are four local TDM organizations in Tokaj Wine Region. The Abaúj Tourist Association and the Sátoraljaújhely-Hegykoz Tourism Association was established in 2008, the Tokaj-Hegyalja, Taktakoz, Hernád Valley Tourism and Cultural Association was founded in 2009, the Sárospatak and its surroundings Tourism Association was established in 2005, and after with the amendment of the articles of organization turned into TDM organization in 2010.
The greatest value of the area of Abaúj Tourism Association is the Hernád River and the Zemplén Mountains, territory of Association is only one settlement, Abaújszántó, where there are some wineries, so the wine attractions rather appear as a supplement. There were many tourist plans and concepts to development of the region, but these were not realized due to lack of funds. Neither the economic nor the social conditions are not conducive to proper for operation of tourism, although many ideas were formulated. The cycling, Ashing and water tourism would provide many opportunities for tourism, but the real breakthrough in tourism has not yet happened. There is appropriate tourist and infrastructural background, but the program organizing is incomplete. A stable financial background and relevant professional base is missing in the institutional structure. There were lots of positive changes in the life of this tourism area, there has started development in tourism, but they have to work hard to achieve a complex rural development in this area.
There are 25 municipalities and 170 service providers, civil organizations, entrepreneurs and private individuals in the membership of the Tokaj-Hegyalja, Taktakoz, Hernád Valley Tourism and Cultural Association. In 2009 a successful TDM tender helped the starting of the organization. In 2011, the organization won another tender, some bikes were bought, and
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publications are made. In the life of settlements of Tokaj wine region the tourism is a very important economic sector, according to people this is the one of the breakthrough points in this area. They can build to the world famous Tokaj wine that can be used not only in terms of Tokaj. It is difficult to reconcile the interests of different stakeholders. The local govern-
ments of wine region are aware of the opportunities of tourism, but there is no real unity, everybody is looking at their own interests. Among the winema-kers is the strongest convergence, the other members could take this attitude. In addition to the cooperation there is a great need for a more balanced financial background.
Figure 2 - Tokaj Wine Region in Hungary. The darker part is the area of the wine region.
Source: http://aborfesztival.hu/tokaj_73
In Satoraljaujhely the organization has 87 members, in which there are six local governments, and there are some service providers, nongovernmental organizations, private individuals in the membership. The organization has had two successful tender, first there were software and website developments, language and other trainings, some new studies and brochures. In the second tender was the focus of the marketing activities, the organization took part in several exhibitions at home and abroad. The Association has made some new brochures, has organized some programs and has purchased some other tools (GPS, bikes, telescopes) that tourists can borrow from the organization. New educational paths have been created. Several improvements have been put in this region, but the real cooperation and stable financial background is missing here too. The wine tourism appears as an additional element in development. The leader of the organization said they should focus of communication and organizational development among members and hosts.
In 2011, the local organizations created the To-kaj-Zemplen-Abauj- regional TDM Nonprofit Ltd. by a tender. In the wine region the strongest cooperation is between the Association of Tokaj, Sarospa-
tak and Sátoraljaújhely. The required tasks are supplying in the case of the micro-regional organization, but real work does not because there is not financial coverage. The leaders of organizations are looking for the opportunity to resolve the financial problems; they hope there will be a very good cooperation, which can help better the development of the whole wine region.
Conclusions
All interviewees confirmed that the Tokaj wine region has a significant tourism potential. In this natural environment there are world-famous wines, cultural and tourist values, for which will be based on tourism and rural developments in the future.
In this financial period of European Union significant resources will be allocated to the development of the Tokaj region, with it interviewees which expect significant improvement. In recent years, the TDM organizations have done a great deal to launch a large-scale tourism development in the wine region. For the time being significant result cannot be shown numerically the organizations implemented organization development, trainings, service development and marketing activities in the first tenders. Organizations
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have started a process to create the basis for a more dynamic development of tourism. TDM organizations and rural operators also claim that there is need for the work of the organizations. The main problem of the organizations is the question of long-term sus-tainability. The real cooperation and stable financial background is missing in every organization. The cooperation is often only apparent; many stakeholders put their own interests to the foreground. Among the rural operators emphasized that although there is a positive side to the institutional structure, but the material frame is not behind them. The membership fees and other own incomes of organizations is not enough to work, so for the time being these TDM orga-
nizations are very tender-dependent organizations. Professionals hope that the questions of sustainabil-ity of organizations will become major actors in rural economy, the tourism law comes into existence with professional touch, and the different level TDM organizations will be able to retrieve the EU resources successfully in this budget season. The Hungarian TDM Alliance also looking for a solution to solve the financial and other problems.
According to all interviewees if the organizations can realize in practice the real unit and they can establish the complex supply and appropriate financial background, they can become serious players in the rural development.
REFERENCES
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Interviewees:
• Lâszlo Béres, Chairman of the Abaüj Tourism Association;
• Lâszlo Ladomérszky, TDM manager of the Tokaj-Hegyalja, Taktaköz, Hernâd Valley Tourism and Cultural Association;
• Robert Blanâr, TDM manager of the Sätoraljaüjhely-Hegyköz Tourism Association;
• Lâszlo Liptâk, Owner of Liptâk Winery;
• Mariann Bratuné Bucsko, Leader of Abaüj Leader Association;
• Lâszlo Kiss, Chairman of the Zemplén Landscapes Rural Development Association;
• Âkos Szemân, Vice Chairman of the South-Zemplén Rural Development Association.
