**Examples of Rural Tourism in Turkey**

Turkey has a favourable geographic, cultural and humanity structure for rural tourism. Through all these rich resources, the increasing demand for rural tourism can be met, a considerable amount of share can be gained and many advantages can be taken. However,

Tourism Planning in Rural Areas and Organization Possibilities 143

Women's organizations of rural tourism and the related projects and educational studies in

Being the first agricultural tourism project of Turkey, Karaburun emerged as a product of the efforts of Winpeace, Turkey-Greece Women's Initiative towards bridging the women in respective countries. Established by a group of women inhabiting Küçükbahçe, Sarpnck and Parlak villages of İzmir's Karaburun district, "Karaburun Women Agro-Tourism Cooperative" presents a very diverse understanding of tourism. The women in these three villages seek to make a contribution to home economics by turning their houses into guesthouses. Guests who can participate in activities such as cooking bread, preparing traditional dishes, carpet weaving, horse riding, trekking and picking up olives pass a nature-friendly holiday. In addition, agricultural tourism tries to preserve the traditional

For the education of women in Karaburun, similar cooperatives in Greece were visited and educational trips were organized to the villages in Turkey that are excelled in running guesthouses. This project aims at achieving the economic independence of women villagers who previously worked as unpaid family workers and their social enhancement. The project in Karaburun employs 18 people in total. The Karaburun example clearly shows that once the project extends in the whole of Turkey, it would be greatly beneficial in every respect

 **Mersin-Erdemli District Kösbucag village agricultural tourism development project**  The project location, Kösbucağ village, is in 12 km distance from Erdemli and it has some Roman and Byzantine ruins. The main source of income of the village is agriculture and animal husbandry. The project aimed at contributing to the development and extension of agricultural tourism, providing employment opportunities other than agriculture, increasing household income by direct acquisition of local products to the consumers, developing collaboration in the locality, and preserving and utilizing the agricultural product diversity, natural resources and cultural assets. The target group of the project is principally women since women have the potential to fulfill the essentials of agro-tourism. It endeavored to make women obtain income by using the education provided. Social status of the women with income tends to increase and consequently contributes to the domestic decision making mechanism. With a thorough marketing, this project is expected to cause

DATUR is the Eastern Anatolia Tourism Development Project initiated by Efes Beverage Group, part of Anadolu Holding, with the support of United Nations Development Project

Carried out between 2003 and 2006, the project aimed at reducing the regional unevenness in the Çoruh Valley in North-Eastern Anatolia by developing community-based tourism as an economic activity that could both be an alternative to agriculture and increase the value added of agricultural sector and at making the local community benefit from the produced income to the utmost. The activities within the scope of the project concentrated on

Turkey are evaluated and some selected significant information is presented.

products subject to be forgotten such as jam, handicrafts and aromatic plants.

major social, cultural and economic changes (Anonymous, 2009a).

**DATUR Uzungöl Tourism Development Project** 

(UNDP) and Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

**Karaburun Women Agro-Tourism Cooperative** 

(Anonymous, 2005).

as in all types of tourism, it is essential to express that local analysis be carried out while dealing with rural tourism. The determination of local facilities for rural tourism is very important in that strategies of tourism all across the country should be identified in a more realistic way. It is necessary that the strengths and weaknesses, threats and opportunities of each region having the potential to develop in terms of rural tourism be exhibited in detail, creating a roadmap.
