ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF AGRITOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN KARNATAKA -AN EMPIRICAL STUDY

Agritourism has emerged as a promising rural development strategy by diversifying farm incomes, enhancing household resilience, and stimulating local economies. This study investigates the infrastructural capacities, economic impacts, and support ecosystems of agritourism in Karnataka, India, through a survey of 56 host practitioners. Descriptive and inferential analyses reveal that a predominant 87.5% of hosts operate micro scale accommodations (0–5 rooms), constraining revenue potential yet enabling personalized visitor experiences. Agritourism contributes meaningfully to household incomes: 55.4% of respondents report a 10%–25% increase, and 35.7% report gains of 26%–50%, while a minority (3.6%) achieve transformative growth (>50%). Revenue composition is heavily skewed toward farm product sales (83.9%), with lodging and meals representing 16.1%, and cultural activities remaining under leveraged. Government schemes subsidize 58.9% of hosts, yet 25% receive no external assistance, indicating critical outreach gaps; NGO support (3.6%) and private tourism partnerships (12.5%) are nascent. Importantly, 67.9% of hosts observe spillover spending by tourists at local enterprises, underscoring agritourism’s multiplier effect. Finally, 69.6% of respondents would recommend agritourism to peers, reflecting strong practitioner confidence tempered by operational hurdles. We conclude that targeted policy interventions—streamlining subsidies, expanding capacity building through NGOs, and fostering market linkages—combined with strategic diversification into experiential offerings, can unlock agritourism’s full potential as a scalable engine of rural prosperity. This paper contributes rigorous empirical evidence to inform policymakers, investors, and academics on optimizing agritourism for sustainable rural development. Keywords: Agritourism; Economic Benefits; Farm Diversification; Rural Areas; India