Research Note: Evaluating Integrated On-Farm Tourism Activity after Rural Road Inauguration – the Case of Pick-Your-Own Fruit Farming in Gunma,Japan

This paper evaluates the performance of integrated on-farm tourism activity by focusing on pick-your-own fruit farming activity after rural road building in Gunma, Japan. First, conceptual considerations of the significance of rural road building in the development of on-farm tourism activity indicated that the demand-shift effect was more important than the supply-shift effect. It was considered that the higher the degree of integration of on-farm tourism activity, the greater was the realization of the demand-shift effect. Second, statistical evaluation using GIS data revealed that a distance of 1,000 m from rural roads was a referential benchmark by which to judge the effects of distance from roads on farmers' tourism activity. Third, it was clarified empirically that those farmers with broader perspectives – in terms both of a longer time horizon and consciousness of service marketing management such as diversification of the sales channel and targeted customer services – were more successful in integrating tourism activity.