Rural tourism, cultural travel experiences where past and present meet

Travelers today have many options in choosing the type of trip they want. Conventional or mass tourism is geared toward leisure and entertainment, and places little importance on local people and cultures.
On the other hand, rural tourism has become a top choice for travelers looking for a cultural experience that offers more than just leisure.
Such travel alternatives are today being offered in different regions of the Andes, such as Cusco, where cultural immersion day toursare readily available.
 
¿What is Rural Tourism?
Rural tourism, also known as community-based tourism, involves hospitality services offered by rural communities, often in developing regions, to travelers from different parts of the world.
But it’s much more than just a form of travel and lodging. It is a process of establishing direct personal and cultural ties between travelers and hosts.
In rural community-based tourism, travel becomes a cross-cultural experience involving cultural immersion and connection, which creates understanding between people from different global cultures.
 
The key values of Rural Tourism
In rural tourism, cultural sustainability is highly valued. Choosing rural tourism is a matter of respect and admiration for traditional people who have deep historical connections to the land and live in harmony with the ecosystem they inhabit.
Rural tourism should also foster local economic growth and development, but always in ways that are chosen and directed by the host rural community, not imposed by outsiders.
Tourism should never interfere with local cultural values or try to change traditional ways of life. Thus, rural tourism and sustainable rural development can work together to benefit host communities.
At Andean Lodges we place great importance on respect and cultural sustainability for the people who welcome us in Cusco’s rural regions.
Although our travelers visit some larger towns, they don’t stay at the small rural communities with whom we work in the Mt. Ausangate region, Chilca and Osefina, to avoid disrupting their everyday lives.
However, local rural Quechua villagers are involved in every aspect of Andean Lodges’ treks and tourism activities, working as hosts, cooks and housekeepers at our four ecolodges, as llama caravan drivers, and as true exponents of the ancient cultural heritage they have inherited.
They are the decision-makers and key participants in our enterprise, and thus they enjoy the benefits and advantages of rural tourism.And you can meet them personally on a trek to Ausangate.
Read more about how Andean Lodgesworks in close partnership with rural Andean communities at: https://bit.ly/2SYIRq7
We invite you to immerse yourself in cultureby visiting Cusco, the ancient center of the Inca civilization, and to join us on an unforgettable trek to splendidly scenic Mt. Ausangate.