Tourism, Development and Protected Areas: Deconstructing the Myth

The relation between tourism and rural development has been strengthened by planning frameworks such as rural development (the LEADER programmes) and by the management of protected natural areas. This relation also contributes to the concept of the multifunctionality of agricultural land. However, in the management of protected areas in Spain, the role of tourism and the public use of areas of maximum protection are often prioritised to the detriment of the agrarian societies with a permanent presence in these surroundings. In this paper, we analyse the impact of environmental planning and rural development on the characterisation of private tourist services in the Sierra de las Nieves natural park (near Málaga, Spain), using statistical sources, surveys and interviews with stakeholders. The results obtained show that the geographic distribution of private facilities is largely unrelated to public considerations. We view this outcome as a consequence of the disjunction between the agrarian traditions of local society and the new measures adopted to promote tourist activities.