No. 1/2 (2013)

Article summarising the Report carried out for the Apulia Region to estimate undeclared tourism.

Summary article on the Report on Thermal Tourism in the Region of Sicily.

In postmodern society the search for wellness and a new concept of health have led to the emergence of new values and the growth of innovative purchasing and consumption models, involving a rising number of consumers and market segments. In Italy today the wellness market is in fact growing and no longer involves only the higher income classes but also middle income segments, and is thus growing markedly in terms of quantity. All this is not the result of some passing fashionable phenomenon, but rather of a profound change in the lifestyle of many Italians (Gregori and Cardinale, 2009), which has led postmodern consumers to be more careful about their look, physique and mental and physical wellbeing, and sees them looking for opportunities to relax in harmony with nature, and to demand accommodation facilities that increasingly act as wellness services. Ultimately, the concept of wellness has expanded, including not only wellness in a physical sense but also in mental, spiritual and social terms. Health can no longer in fact be considered as simply the absence of illness, or as prevention of illness, but rather as the individual attaining a general mental and physical balance and inner satisfaction (Smith and Laczko, 2008; Cohen and Bodeker, 2008).

Rural tourism is a nonfarm, plural activity that promotes the valorization of the environment, history, cultural heritage and diversity, and also contributes to the local economic and spatial reorganization. A qualitative, exploratory and descriptive survey was conducted based on open interviews with key informants, as well as a relevant literature review on the proposed theme, with the objective of understanding the relation of revitalization and rural tourism in the Estrada do Perau (Perau Road) in the municipality of Itaara, RS, Brazil. The assessment categories were based on the criteria described by Vaz (1995). The study focused on the Perau Road, a historic site at Itaara, a small town in the central region of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The results indicate that the revitalization of this site resulted in improvements that both visitors and the local population enjoy, given that the site in question is a tourism offer of Itaara, RS. Conclusion is that rural tourism contributes to the revitalization process and provides benefits and improvements to the local communities and tourists. Revitalization and rural tourism are important not only to preserve environments or restore historic buildings, but also by offering multifunctional spaces with benefits from rural tourism to visitors and the local population.