Objective:The present study aims to investigate the role of rural tourism in local development with an environmental approach in two samples: Abbasabad Behshahr and Soleiman Tangeh Dam in Sari
Methods: The research is applied in purpose, descriptive and correlational in design. The statistical population comprises all domestic and international tourists visiting the province. A purposive‑random sampling technique was employed at three points in the week (beginning, middle, and end) to select respondents. A total of 475 questionnaires were completed. Data were analyzed with SPSS using Pearson correlation, multiple regression, and path‑analysis modeling.
Results: All six components of the “role of rural tourism” showed a direct and significant relationship with locally‑oriented, environmentally‑based development. Four key factors—environmental sustainability (β = 0.43), economic impacts of tourism (β = 0.42), local community participation (β = 0.41), and tourism infrastructure (β = 0.23)—exhibited strong direct effects (overall correlation = 0.69) on local development and together explained 48 % of the variance in the dependent variable. Path‑analysis revealed a noteworthy finding: the third component’s total effect (direct + indirect) was almost equal to that of the first component. Moreover, the dimensions “diversity of tourism activities” and “cultural‑social impact of tourism,” although not showing a direct and significant relationship with the dependent variable, exerted a significant influence on it through indirect pathways in the structural model.
Conclusions: Sustainable local development emerges from the systematic synergy of environmental, economic, social, and infrastructural elements. Each component not only impacts development directly but also amplifies the effect of other components, generating indirect and reinforced influences throughout the development process. These findings underscore the need for integrated, comprehensive planning to achieve balanced and resilient development in rural areas.