Caminhos rurais of Porto Alegre: touristic potential and the preservation of rural heritage

Abstract

This article ponders on rural tourism, with an emphasis on Porto Alegre’s cultural and natural heritage. This research was a result of the discipline of Museology and Cultural Tourism in the Bachelor’s course in Museology at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), whose goal was to analyze aspects of rural tourism in Porto Alegre through a study about the tourist itinerary called “Caminhos rurais de Porto Alegre.” The concepts of rural tourism and cultural, natural, and rural heritage were approached. The methodology employed was intended to be a combination of bibliographic research and online information gathering about “Caminhos rurais de Porto Alegre.” In this study, it was observed that the roadmap proposal arises from the conception of rural tourism as a way to allow visitors to experience activities in direct contact with nature, legitimize the importance of rural production, and make them aware of the preservation of local heritage. Rural tourism activities are developed in the roadmap through a series of initiatives that involve different actions in this field, such as educational rural tourism, tourism with the production of agro-ecological products, and equestrian tourism, among others. The tourist activities in the rural areas of Porto Alegre represent a stimulus for development that could be enhanced through more effective marketing actions for the internal public, that is, the residents of Porto Alegre itself. We will also highlight some aspects of the research that, in the end, intends to recognize the fine line that links rural tourism to the preservation of cultural and natural heritage.