DOI: 10.36347/sjebm.2017.v04i07.002

Pages: 409-416

Agritourism industry is growing in Taiwan. Numerous farms and ranches are providing agricultural experiences as recreational activities to attract tourists. To integrate the resources of individual farms and to improve the income of farming households, the Taiwan Government has established many Recreational Agriculture Districts (RADs) to activate the local economy and strengthen the sustainable development of rural communities. Since most of the RADs located in western Taiwan, this study aimed at presenting the economic contribution of these districts by investigating their tourist arrivals and revenues. Primary data from the recreational farms in the targeted RADs of western Taiwan through a questionnaire survey were collected. The main items of the questionnaire included the amount of tourists, travel types of tourists, average expenditure per tourist, total revenues, and share of revenue sources of the RADs. The results showed that these districts received more than 4 million tourists and generated above 47 million USD in a year. The latest established districts had more tourists and better economic performance than the earliest ones did. Catering and lodging, however, had not been effective to increase sales of farm products as expected. To increase revenues, the findings also suggest farms that target group tourists and field trip students may elaborate experiential activities and packaged tours while those target independent tourists may address typical cuisines.