Local tourism entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial climate: The case of igneada, kirklareli

Abstract

1 Introduction Rural areas are one of the rare sites that can offer a lifestyle that is intertwined with nature that many people have longed for, or that will allow them to experience a short-term experience in the context of tourism (Çakir and Ergüven, 2016). However, in order to develop rural tourism in a certain region, it is necessary to create supply elements to meet this demand. The task of producing and introducing touristic goods and services in rural destinations falls to local entrepreneurs. However, it would not be a realistic approach to expect local people to become entrepreneurs in the tourism sector, which is a sector they have no experience with. Therefore, it is imperative to prepare a suitable climate in order to encourage locals to become tourism entrepreneurs. The fact that the West Marmara region, which includes the research area Igneada region, is among the regions with the lowest intention of entrepreneurship (Karadeniz, 2014) also supports the fact that it is not realistic to expect the local people to intend to invest in tourism in their own self. Therefore, the establishment of a supportive and encouraging entrepreneurial climate in increasing the local people’s intention to become an entrepreneur in the field of tourism is even more important for the Igneada region. Considering the regional differences in entrepreneurial intentions, it is thought that a positive entrepreneurship climate in Kirklareli-Igneada region will contribute to the emergence of local tourism entrepreneurs. © Peter Lang GmbH Internationaler Verlag der Wissenschaften Berlin 2019 All rights reserved.