Activities

For providers of rural tourism services

• We elaborate quality requirements for country tourism facilities, inspecting them regularly and awarding quality categories.
• We have established a database of country tourism accommodations in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, and we regularly update it.
• We award the "Green Certificate" to country tourism facilities - a sign of environmental quality in tourism services.
• Each year we award the title of "Host of the Year".
• We organise training seminars and trips to gain experience for country tourism service providers.
• We hold regular association board meetings and open meetings of participants, and anyone who is interested in country tourism is welcome to attend.
• We produce teaching materials for country tourism service providers and publish timely information about the business of country tourism in the professional section of our Internet homepage.
• We provide individual consultations in our offices and visit country tourism facilities as requested.
• We provide marketing services for country tourism in Latvia and abroad.

For tourists

• We publish the annual catalogue "Country Holidays" in Latvian, English, German and Russian.
• We maintain and regularly update the country tourism homepage www.traveller.lv on the Internet.
• We publish tourism maps and travel guides in the series "Green Holidays".
• We establish tourism routes and programmes in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia (eco-tourism, boating, bicycling, driving routes, etc.).
• We popularise Baltic rural tourism offers at tourism fairs and exhibitions.
• We provide online reservations for country tourism accommodations.

For the development of rural tourism

• We collect and analyse statistics, conduct research and study the development of country and eco-tourism.
• We work hand-in-hand with European country tourism organisations.
• We organise international country tourism seminars and conferences.
• We represent the interests of country tourism businesses before the government and other institutions (programmes, funds, etc.), taking part in the drafting of new laws and regulations when necessary.
• We manage and participate in EU and national country tourism development and environmental protection projects.

Our memberships

• In Latvia:  The Latvian Tourism Advisory Board, the Latvian Council of Agricultural Organisations, the Latvian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Association of Latvian Travel Agents "Alta", the Environmental Advisory Board.
• In Europe:  The European Federation of Farm and Village Tourism "EuroGites", the European Eco-Agro Tourism Association "ECEAT", the European Landowners’ Organisation "ELO", the European Association of Eco-Labels "VISIT".