Migración por amenidad y turismo: ¿dinámicas globales en el espacio rural? El caso de Tafí del Valle (Tucumán, Argentina)

Tourism and migration are generally considered important forces for social, territorial and
economic change in rural areas. Investigations frequently stress the negative, corrupting effects of the two phenomena for “the local”, understood as authentic and thus necessarily worth to protect. This article explores the influence of tourism and migration in Tafí del Valle, a town in Northwestern Argentina. Through an interdisciplinary, qualitative and ethnographic approach, we try to contribute to the study of two concepts: the new mobilities paradigm (Sheller & Urry, 2006) and local hybridization (Woods, 2007). The results of the study emphasize the necessity to adopt new approaches for research in rural areas and demonstrate that the “globalization” of the rural provides opportunities as well as risks. It is indicated too that local policies are lagging well behind the new challenges.