Author(s)

Agnes A. Sirima

Department of Tourism and Recreation, Sokoine University of Agriculture, Morogoro, Tanzania.

Agritourism has the potential to link agriculture with culture and tourism, as an alternative form of tourism in rural areas. Despite contributing to the local economic growth, agritourism can significantly contribute to the growth of the national income as well. This study was conducted along the Uluguru Mountains, Morogoro region with the aim to assess the prospects of agritourism development as a key factor to the growth and sustenance of rural economy. This qualitative research adopted an exploratory method of inquiry where interviews were conducted to individuals growing strawberries along the Ulurugu Mountain. A total of 14 strawberry farmers were involved. Data saturation was used as a cut-off point during data collection. Secondary data were collected from various sources to gain insights and relevant information regarding farm tourism, specifically agritourism practices. Content analysis was performed to categorize ideas and generate patterns. Results indicate that, Uluguru Mountains has fertile agricultural land that supports growth of varieties of crops (mostly vegetables and fruits). Specifically, strawberry farming has a great potential to develop agritourism along the Uluguru Mountain as it is unique agricultural practice. Similarly, strawberry farming tours present diverse opportunities for the communities to generate additional income. However, many challenges prevent the same. Farmers lack of skills to combine strawberry farming with tourism activities; lack of awareness, limited accessibility of farm sites and poor marketing of the products are major drawbacks of agritourism development in the area. It is therefore important to train farmers to promote agritourism without displacing the key activity of food production, as well as developing entrepreneur skills among the farmers to attract larger markets. Furthermore, regional coordination as well as forging partnership among stakeholders along the strawberry value chain is important to develop and sustain agritourism in the area.

Agritourism, Rural Tourism, Uluguru Mountains, Farm Tourism

Sirima, A. (2023) Strawberry Picking as an Agritourism Activity at Uluguru Mountains, Tanzania. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 11, 332-339. doi: 10.4236/jss.2023.117023.