Agritourism -- The word sounds like a trendy food you might find at a health food store between acai and kombucha. What agritourism actually is is an activity that brings customers to your land. While this concept might sound confusing, you may already have agritourism happening on your land today. Do you rent your land out for fruit picking, hunting, camping, or fishing? Congratulations, you’re already an Agritourism pro!
Summer is a perfect time for dipping your toes into agritourism. Here are some ways to use agritourism to bring in some extra money this summer.
Horseback Riding
If you have a lifelong love of horses, sharing it with others might be a great way to bring in some extra cash this summer. Renting out horses for trail rides, teaching lessons, or boarding horses on your land are all lucrative options.
While horses can be a huge draw, they can be expensive if you don’t already have most of the equipment. You’ll need:
- Horses (of course!). Depending on how many riders you are expecting, typically you should have between two to twelve horses
- Trails or an area to ride the horses in
- Hay, grass, concentrates, and treats
- A shovel and wheelbarrow for mucking
- Saddles, blankets, helmets, and bridles
- An unlimited water supply (did you know horses drink at least eight gallons of water a day?)
- The time to feed, care, exercise, and groom your horses
- Equipment for hoof maintenance (every six to eight weeks)
If you don’t have seven out of eight in that list, horses might not be the most financially-sound agritourism opportunity for you. Once the business is running, you can make extra cash by setting up a shop for visitors with branded gifts and common-sense needs for a day out (like water bottles and snacks).
Camping Land
If you have vacant land that you don’t need to keep in pristine condition, you might consider renting it out for camping. Camping is one of the most minimal-effort ways to rent out land (except for getting calls from that one person who gets lost every five seconds on their way to your property), and many are willing to pay top dollar for beautiful camping sites. You can charge extra for forest, mountain, or waterside property.
Using land for camping does come with its drawbacks. As mentioned above, you shouldn’t rent land out for camping if you need it to stay in perfect condition. Campers can leave behind lots of trash (plastic bags, old food, and even human waste!). Not only can this be bad for your land, it can attract predators like bears that you wouldn’t want near your family. Consider investing in a Porta-Potty and looking into the waste management options needed to run a campground.
Tours
Visiting farm land has always been a popular field trip for school children, but there is also a growing interest from hip foodies who want to know how their food is raised. Giving tours of your land is a great way to teach people about farming and sell some of your crops along the way. If you sell your local grown food at a farmers market or local restaurant, those would be great places to promote that tours of the farm the food came from are available.
U-Pick
People are happy to pay extra for the experience of picking their own apples, berries, or other fresh crops. In summer, crops like corn, cucumbers, melons, and tomatoes are all in high demand.
U-Pick crops come with some surprising benefits. There are reduced labor costs, no transportation costs for the U-Pick crops, and entry fees ensure income even if people don’t pick anything.
If you are willing to work weekends and don’t mind the extra clean-up from people on your land, U-Pick could be a great way for you to make some extra cash this summer.
Vineyards
Who doesn’t love a nice, cold glass of wine during the summer? We could use a glass right about now! Wine tours are a summer staple. If you own a vineyard, consider tours, tastings, or interactive events to get wine lovers to your property. You can also pair your wines with your own cheese, fruits, or vegetables. Double the sales!
Even in the most well-planned agritourism plans, accidents happen. Tourists who aren’t used to rural life have the potential to injure themselves on your land. Because of this, you should have guests sign a waiver that protects you and your land. For a more in-depth look into the legality of agritourism, here’s a helpful PDF.
Agritourism is on the rise in America. Farming video games such as Stardew Valley are getting young and urban people interested in agriculture. A rising interest in how food is grown is also bringing more people to the farms. Hopefully, this article jump-started your creativity into thinking of how you can incorporate agritourism into your land this summer. If you are interested in purchasing a property to be used for agritourism, make sure to near you that is qualified to advise you on the transaction.
About the Author: Laura Barker is the Membership and Communications Specialist for the REALTORS® Land Institute. She graduated from Clark University in May 2017 and has been with RLI since October 2017.