The experience of rural authenticity in Dutch (holiday) farms Marina Boldyreva The experience of rural authenticity in Dutch (holiday) farms Master Thesis: Leisure, Tourism, and Environment Student: Marina Boldyreva Registration number: 890617091130 Thesis code: GEO-80436 Supervisor: Arjaan Pellis Examiner: Prof. Dr. Rene van der Duim Wageningen University and Research Department of Environmental Sciences Cultural Geography Chair Group Submission date: January 13, 2019 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS While finishing the writing of this thesis, I cannot believe that I have obtained such a wonderful opportunity to graduate from Wageningen University & Research. A few years ago, this opportunity seemed not achievable and I could not even imagine that I would study abroad. However, everything is attainable if you are enthusiastic about your dream, hardworking and kind. Since childhood, I have dreamt of speaking English in order to broaden horizons and cognize the world. Intuitively, I have felt that my mission is to work abroad and bridge different cultures with Russian culture, bringing people new knowledge, inspiration and happiness. Unfortunately, school education in my own countryside context has not provided children with proper foreign language skills, which is why I began learning English at University from scratch. Then, studying in the evening after work, step by step I was closer to my dream, while my parents and my brother did not lose their hope either and have always favoured me. Luckily, one day I was informed that European programme “Erasmus Mundus” had selected me as an exchange student for studying abroad at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, where Dennis Duindam had chosen my candidature. Furthermore, owing to Ewa Wietsma, the international project manager of Wageningen University & Research, I have got a lot of valuable advice regarding living in the Netherlands and Dutch culture. Furthermore, Yulia Kisora has accompanied me during my study and provided me with an invaluable support. I would like also to thank my study adviser Lieke van der Zouwen who has listened to me with due attention and empathized with my feelings and experiences. The teachers of Qualitative and Quantitative Research Techniques, Ivo van der Lans and Jurian Meijering, have provided me with practical knowledge and advice. Yet, if you want something, the Universe will facilitate your aim, and in my case here, at Wageningen University, I have met brilliant and genuine people who have started to help me and guide me forward. I am sincerely grateful to Arjaan Pellis, who comprehended my big desire to entirely finish the whole master programme, acquainted me with Ria Vries, responsible for supporting international students with obtaining sufficient funding for their MSc program, and helped me obtain a scholarship. Moreover, eventually, Arjaan Pellis has become my supervisor, what I could only dream of. Due to his high professional qualification, kind heart, personal approach, he encouraged me as a very anxious and emotional person, and as a result, by this moment my thesis has been completed. I am greatly owing to Eric de Munck from the Department of Education and Student Affairs at the University for the understanding of my situation and his participation in the decision to extend a period of my study. MLE group has presented me unforgettable experience of a real international friendship and has become my second family. I regard my housemates as my family as well because whatever has occurred in my life they have been aware of everything and hurried to solve my problems. Thank you a million! 2 SUMMARY The topic of rural tourism, incorporating the experience of rural authenticity, has been abundantly discussed in academic literature. Yet in practice, the definition of rural authenticity has turned out to be quite problematic, since rurality often seems genuine and easily attainable in the merely visual appearance of the countryside. However, tourists may interpret rural authenticity in different ways. Therefore, my research focusses on Dutch farm tourism as a kind of rural tourism where tourists may experience more than bright sceneries. For instance, one can become familiar with how farmers live in traditional, yet active, farming businesses. In turn, the position of farmers concerning tourist entertainment and performed farm authenticity is accessible and observable for me as a researcher in this study. Hence, the appreciation of rural authenticity in Dutch farms has been explored from the perspective of both tourists and farmers, including my own position and involvement in the process. This, in my opinion, reflects the whole picture of examining the experience of rural authenticity. In order to explore the experience of rural authenticity, I emphasize the distinction between types of authenticity in tourism studies, thereby referring to the categorization offered by the analytical approach of Wang (1999). Wang explicitly specified three types of authenticity in relation to ontology, epistemological discourses, and the subject and scope of research (see also Cohen& Cohen, 2012; Frisvoll, 2013). These categories are referred to as objective, constructed / symbolic and existential / subjective authenticity. To visualize these distinctions, the photos on the front page represent these categories for Dutch farms. The first image could be an example of an objective and authentic Dutch farm; the second picture shows how authentic activities may be culturally constructed in a farm; and the last photo represents a form of existential authenticity in a farm through my personal experience with this farm by acting in it as a researcher and tourist. The fieldwork was done on a dairy goat farm named “De Brömmels”and on two dairy cow farms, named “De Blökke” and “Overleekerhoeve”. I used qualitative methods, including informal and semi-structured interviews, participant observation and photo-elicitation. The results show that in terms of tourist attractions, farm tourism or agritourism are becoming an attraction in themselves, opening a window into the vigorous reality of a rural life on farms. Furthermore, farmers strive to demonstrate rural authenticity through their daily life or created tourist entertainment, simultaneously accomplishing their farm work. However, farm businesses are not always as privileged as farm tourism, which makes rural authenticity more ostentatious. In turn, tourists analyzing authenticity in farms state that authentic equals simplicity, a normal farm life, an ideal picture, wood, green paint, not a huge number of animals, hand-made products, purity, quietness, beautiful nature, nice people, including the farmer’s family and quests in camping, back to nature and animals, farming as the first priority. Attempting to satisfy the expectations of tourists, farmers permit guests to see assets or facets of their farms. For example, goats, a milking process, the work of a farm; connect tourists with a basic life and nature; provide tourists with educational attractions; acquaint tourists with the original history of a farm, and trust people. 3 It is important to acknowledge that the process of appreciation of authenticity is questionable as it depends on multiple aspects. For instance, the research revealed that, even though theoretically the comprehension of authenticity is supposed to strengthen as soon as tourists are immersed in farm activities, in practice, the majority of tourists on the observed farms prefer passive observation and consumption of an authentic past through tourism practices. Besides, constructions of authenticity can be considered as borrowed constructions of traditions and, consequently, some tourist products, like French goat cheese production and consumption, became accepted in Dutch farm practices over time. Furthermore, although farm landscapes appear to be ideal and romantic, they are successfully used in farm tourism for attracting tourists as the main part of business. In other words, authenticity is as much a commercial product versus romantic farming landscapes. Keywords: rural tourism, farm tourism, objective authenticity, constructed authenticity, existential authenticity, performance, perception, tourist experience 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ....................................................................................................................... 2 SUMMARY ............................................................................................................................................ 3 LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................................. 7 1. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................... 8 1.1. Problem Statement and Relevance of the Study ......................................................................... 12 1.2. Research Aim and Question ....................................................................................................... 13 1.3. Outline of this Thesis ................................................................................................................. 13 2. THE THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ............................................................................................ 14 2.1. The Concepts of Authenticity in Rural Tourism Research ......................................................... 14 2.1.1. Objective authenticity .............................................................................................................