Sustainability Communication in Rural Tourism: Website Content Analysis, in Viseu Dão Lafões Region (Portugal)

• Autor(a) principal: Pato, Maria Lúcia
• Data de Publicação: 2021
• Outros Autores: Duque, Ana Sofia
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.19/6978
• topic: sustainability; rural tourism; communication; web site analysis; Portugal

In the last few years, the relationship between tourism and sustainability has been consolidated. In the context of rural tourism, this connection is even stronger, given the environmental specificities and the natural framework of this type of tourism. To achieve sustainability behaviors is crucial that rural tourism lodgings communicate their essence, as well the products and experiences available for tourists. This because it is a common practice, for visitors to look for more infor-mation on the internet, about where they will be staying, before booking their tourist experience. The main objective of this study is the analysis of the information provided by rural tourism lodg-ings, through their websites, regarding sustainability issues. The territory selected for the devel-opment of this study is the Portuguese Viseu Dão Lafões Region, located in the Center of Portugal. Based on other studies, the methodology contemplates a content analysis, conducted in 39 rural tourism lodgings websites. The results show that some improvements are needed, to clarify and emphasize the message about sustainable practices, in these rural lodgings. Some practical recommendations are provid-ed, that can be adapted to these rural tourism lodgings, or others.