DETERMINING THE ATTITUDES OF LOCAL PEOPLE TOWARDS RURAL TOURISM: THE CASE OF MISI

Misi Village that was one of the oldest settlements in Bursa has a rich potential in terms of natural, historical and cultural tourism values. Rural tourism activities have an important influence upon economic vitalization of the village. In this study locals of Misi Village were interviewed for the aim of determining their approach towards rural tourism. The questions in the interview form, 17 in total were about tourism facilities in Misi Village, tourism types, tourism values, the expectations of locals from tourism, benefiting from tourism economically, the problems in Misi Village, the promotion of Misi Village and the opinions of locals were asked. According to study results, the majority of people living in Misi Village said that tourism facilities were insufficient, however they admitted that they were aware of tourism values, so their expectations from tourism were high and also they wanted to benefit from tourism in their village. Expecting more support from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and Bursa Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism, the local people were in agreement about that more effort should be made for village's promotion.