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Part 2:

The Case Studies

1 Ballyhoura, Ireland 732 Basilicata, Italy 793 Bregenzerwald, Austria 834 Lungau, Austria 875 Monta�a de Navarra, Spain 936 Pays Cathare, France 987 Pohjois-Karjala, Finland 1048 S�chsische Schweiz, Germany 1099 Schouwen West, Netherlands 114

10 Sitia, Greece 11911 Skaft�rhreppur, Iceland 12412 Trossachs, United Kingdom 13013 Vale do Lima, Portugal 13614 Vallonbruk, Sweden 14115 Vosges du Nord, France 146

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The EuropeanEconomic Area

TOWARDS QUALITY RURAL TOURISM72

Presenting information on the case studies

Each case study takes a global view of the approach to quality being pursued by thedestination. It also provides more information on specific initiatives referred to as examplesin Chapters 3 to 5 and sets them in context. The text is divided into sections as follows.

The tourism contextThe relative importance of tourism in the destination, together with its maincharacteristics and performance.

StrategyThe main objectives for tourism and how they were drawn up.

The place of qualityThe overall approach adopted towards quality.

Leadership and partnershipThe organisational structure for tourism in the destination, including involvement ofbusinesses, the community and other key players.

Product and marketing initiativesA selection of specific product development and marketing initiatives which have aparticular influence on the quality of the visitor experience.

The quality management processA review of initiatives and general activity to obtain feedback and to set, label andimprove standards.

Managing tourism impactSpecific activity to manage the environmental and other impacts of tourism in thedestination.

Results and future prospectsAn assessment of the results achieved and directions for the future.

Key Success FactorsA short list of positive elements in the approach taken by the destination.

Q

73

Case Study 1

A traditional agricultural area,which has built up a tourism product based on a rural tourism co-operative, offering the visitor an authentic and welcoming ruralexperience.

Ballyhoura is an extensive area of inlandcountryside lying between Limerick and Corkin south west Ireland. With a landscape of lowlying pastures and rounded hills, the arearelies heavily on agriculture, with a strongtradition in dairying.

The tourism context

BallyhouraÕs countryside is attractive andtypically Irish, but has no outstanding tourismresource. It has relied on promoting a genuinerural experience and warm welcome, hencethe slogan Ôtruly rurally yoursÕ.

The region has only emerged as a tourismdestination since 1986, due to the efforts ofBallyhoura Failte, IrelandÕs first communitytourism cooperative. Building from a low base,it now includes a range of accommodation,small scale attractions (such as open farmsand interpretative centres), and countrysiderecreation facilities.

The initial market was based on groupvisits, especially from educational groups.Since then, both the independent and groupmarkets have grown considerably, with abalance between Irish, British and overseasvisitors.

A lush green agricultural area typical of central Ireland

Programmes foreducational groups are an

important part of theBallyhoura offer

The opportunity to visitfarms is part of the

experience in Ballyhoura

Ireland

DUBLIN

BALLYHOURA

74 TOWARDS QUALITY RURAL TOURISM

Q

Strategy

The tourism strategy has two overallobjectives.

● To provide a cooperative marketing functionthrough groups of enterprises workingtogether.

● To improve the range and quality of thetourism product, on three levels:

1 encouraging local people to start up new enterprises;

2 supporting the improvement and expansion of existing enterprises;

3 attracting new inward investors, piggybacking on successful development.

Targets for investment and resultingrevenue are set and monitored.

The approach is based on an annuallyagreed programme of initiatives. A cleardevelopment model is applied to eachinitiative:

● conceiving the idea based on marketassessment;

● bringing public and private partnerstogether;

● creating a suitable structure for delivery;● piloting the idea;● developing an action programme;● encouraging the private sector to take over;● ongoing monitoring and review.

The Place of Quality

Delivering an authentic experience has beenimportant from the outset. The approach hasbeen to provide a standard of facilitiesappropriate to the market, but with a qualityof service which exceeds expectations.Recently, the emphasis has changed fromexpanding the range of the products toimproving the quality and performance ofexisting businesses. Attention is also being paidto the quality of infrastructure and servicesdelivered by Ballyhoura Failte as a whole.

A limited response to advertising highlightsthe importance of quality in encouragingrepeat business and recommendations.

Leadership and Partnership

The local tourism cooperative was originallyset up in three parishes but the area wasquickly extended and public sector agencieswere brought in alongside communityrepresentatives. Two bodies now work intandem.

● Ballyhoura Failte is a cooperativemarketing organisation. It functions as acommercial reservation agent and incomingtour operator, yet is cooperatively ownedand has community related objectives. Thecommercial function makes it more actionand customer orientated than manydestination organisations. It has a full timemanager and reservation official and twopart time staff.

● Ballyhoura Development is a non-profitrural development company, whose aim isto maintain the population and vitality ofthe area by diversifying the economic base,integrating environmental goals andimproving the quality of life of localresidents. It manages the LEADER II andLocal Development Programmes anddelivers many of the initiatives.

The organisations cross administrativeboundaries and have maintained flexibility andindependence.

Ballyhoura Failte has five geographicalsubgroups as well as representatives from eachtourism sector and from statutory bodies. Ithas been useful to hold occasional openmeetings for all members to air theirconcerns.

Wider community involvement is seen asvery important. A community consultativecommittee of 50 members includesrepresentatives from each village and localsocieties such as heritage groups. A simplenewsletter updates people on recentactivities.

Case study 1

BallyhouraIreland

75

Information services

All visitors receive a basic information pack,where possible before arrival. This includes awelcome letter, questionnaire and informationleaflets.

Originally, a local coordinator welcomed allvisitors personally and helped them with theirarrangements. As business built up, theemphasis moved onto accommodation hosts asinformation providers. A structured system forthis was introduced and training provided. Allenterprises are encouraged to talk to theirguests. A detailed visitor information dossier isavailable, with a standardised format that canbe personalised by each host.

The ÔBallyhoura CentreÕ forms a physicalpresence to which both visitors and memberenterprises can relate. It contains aninformation centre, craft shop and a caf�. Thelatter two help to finance the first. Thecentre offers independent visitors theopportunity to meet their holiday organisersand feedback their views. BallyhouraDevelopment Agency is housed in the samebuilding, providing business services to localenterprises.

Product and marketing initiatives

Marketing activities

The main thrust of marketing is to touroperators and agents, providing them with along term and quality personal service.Initially it took at least three years ofperseverance to demonstrate sufficientcommitment for agents to book.

Ballyhoura joins other rural areas in thebranded Irish Country Holidays campaign. Thiswas important in delivering market impact andconfidence in the quality of the product andservice. At first the campaign delivered 80% ofthe individual enquiries, although with anincrease in direct contact this has nowdropped to 20%.

BallyhouraÕs own website has become amajor source of individual enquiries. Carefulattention is paid to the quality of the site, andthe use of key words used by search enginesrelated to known consumer interests. In 1998around five enquiries per day led to sixbookings per week.

Group packages and programmes

Group programmes are a special feature.Although prepared itineraries are on offer,most are tailor made for each group. Theseinclude:

● educational e.g. languages, agriculture;● general ÔExperience BallyhouraÕ visits;● outdoor activities, such as walking, cycling

or golf.

A training programme has prepared 19 localpeople to act as group guides.

Central reservation for independent visitors

A central reservation service is on offer forindependent visitors. Although this delivers agood quality service, some enterprises fail toprovide regular details of availability andthere is a lack of exclusive allocations ofcapacity to Ballyhoura Failte.

The Ballyhoura pack contains a welcome letter, visitinformation and a questionnaire

The Ballyhoura Centrecontains both visitorand business services

A small caf� addsinterest and anincome opportunity inthe visitor centre

76 TOWARDS QUALITY RURAL TOURISM

Accommodation

The approach has been to ensure that allaccommodation meets the Irish Tourist BoardÕsminimum standard of facilities, comfort andhygiene, while encouraging investment inhigher physical standards through grantassistance and better service through training.

Providing an authentic rural experience hasbeen sought in the following ways.

● Quality of welcome. Where possible guestsare invited into the hostsÕ homes, givenlocal hospitality and their needs discussed.This is handled sensitively, recognising thatsome visitors want to be left alone.

● Added extras. Certain extras are offered,such as allowing visitors to look around thefarm or bake bread.

There are over 1 000 beds in family runhotels, B&Bs, self-catering cottages andhostels. Clusters of B&B establishments withinone locality are encouraged in order toaccommodate small coach parties. InformalÔhomestaysÕ are also offered for students,giving participating host families a feel ofwhether tourism is right for them prior tomaking a significant investment.

Visitor attractions and activities

Various rural activities and attractions wereestablished from practically nothing.

● Walking. Local communities and walkingenthusiasts were brought together on awalking committee to identify routes andnegotiate with landowners. A ÔBallyhouraWayÕ was established and a series ofshorter walks developed by eachcommunity. Route maps are produced andan annual walking festival held to raisepublicity. Grading walks, with colour codedwaymarks, promotes visitor confidence andlonger walks are checked annually by theIrish Sports Council using its own qualitystandards.

● Access to Nature. In response to visitordemand for nature and outdoor activities,Ballyhoura Mountain Park was establishedfollowing a zoning study, with trails andinterpretation. Unusually, this was acommunity initiative linked to tourisminterests rather than stemming fromenvironmental planners. A smallercommunity project provides safe access toa bog nature reserve.

● Farm visits. A selection of farms showdifferent aspects of agriculture. Some areopen on a regular basis. The variablequality of these is being addressed by anew ÔWorking Farms of IrelandÕ branding,including quality criteria. Other farms,whose quality is assured through morepersonal attention from the farmer, areopen by appointment.

● Other facilities have been establishedincluding interpretative centres, theatres,archaeological routes, driving routes, golf,horse riding and angling.

Case study 1

BallyhouraIreland

Assistance is given to many small accommodation enterprises

Waterproof route cardsfor short walks created

in conjunction withvillage communities

The Ballyhoura Mountain Park was developed in response tovisitor demand for countryside access

77

The quality management process

Setting and delivering standards

Accommodation standards are monitoredthrough the Irish Tourist Board nationalscheme. Different grades for self-cateringaccommodation helps Ballyhoura Failtemotivate owners to improve quality.Enterprises not reaching grades 3 or 4 receivedlittle repeat business. The bed and breakfastscheme sets only minimum standards and so isless useful in stimulating improvement.Ballyhoura has provided helpful feedbackabout matching the national scheme to localneeds.

The Irish Country Holidays campaign setsstandards for rural destinations as a whole.Members must: be a certain size; have a rangeof attractions including open farms; have acentral co-ordinator; provide informationpacks to each customer; ensure all servicesare approved by the relevant standardsagency; and have adequate insurance cover.

Improvement grants

Ballyhoura Development has administeredmany grants. The allocation of LEADERresources reflects the market demand foraccommodation and also focuses on quality.For example, grants are available forupgrading self-catering accommodation tograde 3 or 4 star standard, and in the B&Bsector to provide ensuite bathrooms.

Training

The provision of training has been a keyfeature. The national training agency CERT hashelped to create many programmes. Twointegrated schemes for improving quality aredescribed below.

Taste of Ballyhoura. Small grants haveencouraged investment in food servicefacilities, training and technical support, theproduction of brochures, and a recipecompetition to publicise quality food service.Revenue from food and catering has more thandoubled. Between 1993 and 1998, 25 newbusinesses and 120 jobs were created. Thecurrent training focus is on ensuring that thefood service industry meets the new nationalhygiene standards as an incentive forparticipation. The emphasis is now onimproving quality in advance of any furtherpublicity.

QUEST (Quality, uniqueness, enhancement,strategic planning and training). Thisprogramme aimed to lift performance andquality in an integrated way by improvingoverall management competence. 20enterprises participated in five two-daytraining modules covering marketing, businessplanning, handling staff, customer care, andsafety and hygiene. One to one advice wasalso available. Each business prepared abusiness plan, with a small grant available forits implementation. The programme shouldresult in around EURO 4m of new investment.

Ballyhoura Failte has quality standards forits own service, such as a maximum responsetime for enquiries and staff training incustomer care and local knowledge.

Customer feedback

All guests receive a questionnaire in theirinformation pack, covering visitor profile andsatisfaction. The collection method provedcritical to response rate. Currently, a pre-paidenvelope is provided, which results in onethird of the forms being returned. Feedbackacted on included introducing short walks andcycle routes and improving the localknowledge of information centre staff.

Complaints are rare and are dealt withusing a standard procedure: response within24 hours; careful discussion with theenterprise concerned; hearing on all sides;reporting back to the customer and referral tothe Irish Tourist Board if necessary.

All groups are asked about theirexperiences during their visit, so problems canbe rectified before they leave. Important secondary feedback is obtained bykeeping close contact with tour operators,many of whom also have their own feedbacksystems. As a result worthwhile adjustmentshave been made, such as introducing languagetraining as a product.

Training sessions withsmall groups play a keyrole in improving qualityand performance

78 TOWARDS QUALITY RURAL TOURISM

● Making use of established national agencies, brands and quality standards.

● Working with a few motivated enterprises to improve quality.

● Actively targeting the group market.

● A successful organisational model, based on a development agency with funding and a cooperative marketing agency.

● Effective use of the internet.

● Strong involvement of the local community in initiatives.

● A visitor centre as a tangible focus for visitor and business services.

● An emphasis on product development, backed by grants and training, leading to improved physical and service standards.

Key success factors

Case study 1

Ballyhoura Ireland

Managing tourism impact

Policy objectives focus on economic benefit.For each initiative, employment targets areset and monitored. Direct employment ismeasured by obtaining feedback fromenterprises. In addition, an economistcommissioned by Ballyhoura developed asimple model for relating visitor numbers andaccommodation occupancy levels to revenuegenerated and employment supported.Separate ratios are calculated for domesticand foreign visitors and for different types ofaccommodation. This has helped to checkachievement against targets.

Environmental impact has not beenmonitored, as the amount of tourism is felt tobe too limited to cause problems. The overallapproach of dispersing tourism across theregion should also prevent problems arising.

Two specific environmental schemes are:

● the Tidy Towns Initiative Ð a national andlocal award scheme for environmentalenhancements to towns and villages;

● environmental routes Ð a small number ofroads selected for promotion for cyclingand coach tours, with environmentalenhancements to increase their appeal.

The impact of tourism on the local communityis monitored through the 50 strong CommunityConsultative Committee.

Results and future prospects

The tourism industry has grown 25 fold in thelast ten years. It employed the equivalent of270 full time jobs in 1998 compared with 150in 1995. Some of the infrastructure workundertaken directly by Ballyhoura Failte hasprovided outlets for unemployed peopleworking through a government trainingscheme. Many new enterprises have startedup and there has been considerableinvestment in the area. New productdevelopment has been designed to reflectmarket trends, such as the popularity ofwalking. Growth targets, in terms of revenuespending per annum, have been met andtourismÕs contribution to the local economyhas increased from 0.2% in 1986 to 5% in 1998.

There have been considerable identifiableimprovements in quality, with 60accommodation establishments and 25 foodoutlets having upgraded their level offacilities. There are ambitious targets forfuture growth in investment and revenue.However, there is an ongoing need to maintainconsistency in customer care and qualityamongst individual enterprises, improvingcommunication between them and BallyhouraFailte and strengthening customer feedback.

Features of heritageinterest are an

important resource inthe village communities

79

Case Study 2

The tourism context

Basilicata has a modest amount of tourism.There are 461 accommodation enterprises, 200of which are hotels, the rest being mainlyagrotourism. A significant proportion of theaccommodation is on the coast.

Tourism has been slowly growing, witharound 270 000 arrivals in 1996. However, it isvery highly concentrated in the summer seasonand on the coast, with the internal rural areabeing little visited.This is partlybecause the regionhas not got a clearimage. The localheritage andtraditions, typicalcuisine, andbeautiful naturalenvironment arerelatively unknown internationally and even within Italy.

A region which has used extensivemarket research as the startingpoint for developing a specificquality product, based on heritageitineraries and packages, tailored tothe needs of the marketplace.

Basilicata is a small region in the far south ofItaly. It has two short stretches of coastlinebut is primarily an inland region. It covers anarea of approximately 10 000 squarekilometres, 93% of which is agricultural orforested. It has a rich vegetation and anotable cultural heritage ranging from Greektemples and Roman thermal baths to Normancastles and medieval abbeys. It is not heavilypopulated, with just 600 000 inhabitants, butunemployment levels are high at 28%.

Italy

A region rich in historic sites and settlements

A little known attractiverural landscape with arich vegetation

ROMA

BASILICATA

80 TOWARDS QUALITY RURAL TOURISM

Q

Strategy

It has been recognised that tourism can helpeconomic development, but this requires animprovement in standards of service andproduct presentation, rather than simply instructural hardware.

Rather than a comprehensive tourismstrategy, the approach has been toconcentrate on a specific quality initiative.The broad objectives were:

● to develop collaboration between thepublic and private sectors;

● to understand the needs and expectationsof existing and potential markets;

● to help enterprises meet these needsthrough training and advice;

● to set up and promote a specific qualityoffer, which would influence others throughdemonstration.

The weak market and the lack of co-operation pointed to practical action tointegrate a wide range of small enterprises tocreate a common offer which was relevant tothe marketplace.

The place of quality

The resulting initiative was called ÔTurismo diQualit�Õ, a phrase applicable to the output aswell as the process. It was realised that inorder to create a quality product, detailedresearch was required on the resources, theenterprises and their views, and potentialmarkets as well as current visitors.

Leadership and partnership

Leadership in developing quality rural tourismhas been provided by the BIC (BusinessInnovation Centre), a body based on aEuropean Union model. The BIC bringstogether local authorities and privateenterprises and works closely with theRegional Tourist Board (APT).

A central aim was to create a workingpartnership, known as a ÔcomakershipÕ, ofenterprises and organisations committed toimproving tourism quality. This is now a wellestablished and motivated group, who shouldinvolve other local actors in the future.

Product and marketing initiatives

The Turismo di Qualit� initiative has followeda number of logical steps.

Extensive product and market research

The first phase, in 1996, involved acomprehensive audit of tourism facilities,services, cultural and environmental heritageand relevant infrastructure. In addition,telephone and face to face interviews wereheld with tourism enterprises andorganisations (hotels, tourist informationcentres, etc.) to record their opinion aboutproblems and opportunities.

The second stage involved two extensiveconsumer surveys.

● Existing visitors were approached through awidely distributed questionnaire probinglevels of satisfaction and expectations.

● Focus group discussions were held in anumber of Italian cities with people whohad never been to Basilicata, includingopinion formers and intermediaries such asjournalists and tour operators. They wereasked to comment about their image of theregion and about marketing ideas to whichthey might respond.

Case study 2

BasilicataItaly

The guide gives a highquality presentation ofthe itineraries with factboxes, maps, pictures anddetailed text

81

These surveys revealed a divergence ofopinion between people who had been to theregion and those who had not. The formerreferred to wonderful nature, low prices,typical and natural food, a cordial populationand much to discover. The latter viewed theregion as poor, with no specific image otherthan being arid, savage, monotonous, hard toreach and parched by the sun.

This negative image, together with theareaÕs inaccessibility, suggested thatinfluencing new markets could not be left tochance, and that a specific product andmarketing programme based on high qualityimages was needed. The positive reaction ofexisting visitors to the local culture andheritage confirmed the basis for a qualityoffer. Feedback from operators with apotential interest in the area pointed to theopportunity to package these strengths inspecific itineraries and programmes.

Bringing people together

An open meeting was held for everyone withan interest in tourism. Over 120 people came(far more than anticipated). Eventually 35enterprises and organisations formed theÔcomakershipÕ group which collaborated on thequality initiative.

A study visit was organised to an area ofFrance with similar structural problems, whichthey had solved through public-privatepartnership. This helped to stimulate practicalideas and was a very positive way of gettingthe group to think and work together.

Developing the quality offer

In order to develop a real product that couldbe sold, each participant was asked to preparean itinerary which involved their ownorganisation, identifying target markets, price,booking arrangements, transportation, andcomplete visit specifications. Experts from theBIC provided assistance.

The itineraries vary from 3 to 10 days; themajority are for groups. They have beenproposed by, and can be booked through, arange of individual accommodationenterprises, hotel associations, agrotourismgroups and local tour operators. Typically, theyinclude a mixture of visiting heritage sites andnature areas, and enjoying local gastronomyand traditions.

The 42 resulting itineraries were publishedin a high quality booklet with many visibleimages, and on a CD-ROM, distributed to touroperators and travel agencies all over Italy andthrough the Italian Touring Club.

In addition to the itineraries, exposure tonew ideas and market opportunities has led tovarious individual quality improvements andinitiatives, such as new restaurants, localevents, environmental improvements andbetter promotion of local produce andhandicrafts to visitors.

Discussing the itineraries with the local cultural association inthe village of Pignola who proposed one of them

Itineraries includemany historic sites,such as the abbey ofS.Michele

82 TOWARDS QUALITY RURAL TOURISM

The quality management process

The essential process of obtaining feedbackfrom enterprises and existing and potentialvisitors, comparing images, expectations andreal experiences, has been described above.This is being maintained, with furthercustomer satisfaction surveys.

Training workshops and advice on businessand quality improvements were held as part ofthe scheme. This training has been extendedmore widely in the region.

The scheme did not establish specificquality criteria. However those involved wereadvised about minimum standards ofhospitality. Special advice was given onpricing, to ensure it reflected quality and wasbased on cost factors as well as competition.

It is hoped that quality demonstratedthrough the itineraries and participatingenterprises may influence other enterprises inthe area.

Two types of quality label are beingestablished:

● for typical regional food such as a pecorinocheese, red peppers and apricots.

● for the brand ÔBorgo hotelÕ (village hotel),setting standards and providing assistanceand a marketing structure for the use ofapartments or houses in villages asaccommodation.

Managing tourism impact

The modest amount or tourism in the ruralarea to date has produced few environmentalproblems. The Pollino National Park is pursuingsustainable tourism. The designation of certainareas, such as the WWF reserve of Pantana diPignola, caused initial resentment amongstlocal people but the new economicopportunities that this brings through tourismhave now been appreciated.

The training programmes have includedcourses on sound environmental managementfor tourism enterprises.

Results and future prospects

The approach of creating a quality productbased on market research, through anintegrated group initiative, is imaginative. Itremains to be seen how easy it will be to sellthe programmes. There is a new spirit ofworking together to improve the visitorexperience and to pursue joint developmentand marketing initiatives. This has stimulatedcreativity and provided an example for others.

Nevertheless, difficulties still stand in theway of quality tourism in Basilicata, such asbureaucratic delay in granting planningpermission which can impede the necessaryinvestment to create a quality product.

New training programmes involving youngpeople, linking tourism to heritage andenvironmental management, bode well for thefuture. New legal structures such as the ÔPattiterritorialiÕ should underpin future strategiesfor integrated development based on public-private partnerships.

● Innovative role of the local development agency.

● Product audit and feedback from operators.

● In-depth research on non-visitors as well as current visitors.

● Effective use of international study visits.

● Working together to create a specific product.

● Providing a bookable product by linking small rural experiences.

Case study 2

Basilicata Italy

Key success factors

Hotel Restorante VillaMaria, responsible forone of the itineraries,

undergoingredevelopment

Castle of Lagopesole,restored with assistance

from ERDF

An initiative to restore the many historic doorways in Pignolais an example of response from the local community