Study Tour İn Turkey

Study tour has been organized in Turkey for representatives of agro / eco-tourism destinations.

Owners (or representatives) of agro / eco-tourism destinations selected from Lankaran economic region within the AgriVision project implemented by Eurasia Partnership Foundation and Constitution Researches Foundation with the financial support of the European Union took part in a study tour in Izmir region of Turkey on July 5-10. The main purpose of the tour was to provide Azerbaijani participants with ideas and tested approaches to develop their tourist destinations. For the study tour, agri / eco-tourism farms were identified that were as compatible as possible with the conditions and opportunities of the selected tourist sites in Azerbaijan, but reached a higher level of development. In general, participants learned about the development strategies of the agri / eco-tourism farms, had the opportunity to learn directly from their colleagues by observing the structure and the delivery of tourism services on the spot.

On the first day of the study tour, the participants visited the “Urla Sharabchilik” agro-tourism destination, whose main activity is winemaking and gardening. During the visit, they received information about the history and activities of the enterprise from officials and asked questions. In the next part of the program, a wine tasting service was organized by the tourist destination and participants were given presentations with brief information about different wines. At the end, a visit was organized to the botanical garden near the tourist destination. During this visit, participants were informed about the garden and the plants there, and offered plant species that may be of interest to them.

On the second day of the study tour, the participants visited “Degirmen” Restaurant and Farm, which provides agro / eco-tourism services. In the first stage of the tour program, the participants got acquainted with the olive oil museum located inside the farm and had a trip to history through the exhibits about the production of olive oil. Afterwards, the deputy head of the enterprise informed the participants about the farm and horse-breeding, and the birds, animals and plants on the farm were demonstrated to them through an in-farm tour. At the end, Ms. Gursel Tonbul, owner of “Degirmen” LLC, received the guests, shared their activities, challenges and success story with them at the tea table, informed them about the concept of circular economy-zero waste and answered the questions of the participants.

On the third day of the tour, a visit took place to the “Almond Natural Life Village” cooperative. First of all, the participants were acquainted by the responsible person with the territory of the enterprise, the farm and the workshops, farmland and guest houses located there through the tour. Then the management of the cooperative met with the participants, informed them about agro / eco-tourism, the history, importance and activities of the cooperative, answered their questions and made suggestions on future opportunities for joint work with Azerbaijani entrepreneurs. Some of the participants expressed interest in the proposal and said they would consider possible cooperation.

On the last day of the tour, a visit to “Isabey Garden and Garden Houses” was organized. Here, the participants were met by the responsible person, acquainted with the activities, history and service areas of the enterprise. Afterwards, the wines produced by the company were presented and offered to the participants to taste several wines. At the end, the participants had lunch in the restaurant of the enterprise, and as a customer got acquainted with the services and taste of dishes served there.

After returning to Azerbaijan to increase the effectiveness of the study tours and share the knowledge gained with local farmers, EPF organized agri / eco-tourism trainings for consortium members, and selected participants shared their findings in a roundtable discussion with all consortium members and other participants.