The impact of tourism development policy on the regions of Hungary

The aim of this paper is to give an overview on the development of tourism development policies in Hungary, over the past two decades. The topic is considered really important, since the paper proves that tourism in Hungary - at policy level - has not received enough focus so far. It has been the part of various economic and social development strategies, but there is not even specific legislation for the sector. In the paper, the evolution of tourism policies is detailed, proving that even policy-makers do not consider it as an individual sector of the economy. Nowadays, when rural areas intend to identify their specific development goals and try to define their own strategies, tourism is preferred in many cases as a possible way to get out of the lagging behind status. However, tourism - as a type of industry - requires well-established economic background and qualified human resource, in addition to the touristic attractions. Therefore, tourism might not be the way to success in many rural regions which do not possess the required resources.