Searching for possible potentials of cultural and creative industries in rural tourism development; a case of Rudkhan Castle rural areas

Purpose This study aims to argue the concept of cultural and creative industries (CCIs)-led tourism within a rural context to investigate the potential of local cultural and creative assets from the perspectives of rural communities, visitors and public institutions to stimulate co-creation experiences and long-term development. Design/methodology/approach By adopting qualitative methodology and case study research, this paper aims at evaluating the positive and negative aspects of developing local CCIs through the case of Rudkhan Castle rural villages in Gilan, Iran, where is the source of various indigenous cultural resources. This will be followed by classifying common CCIs through semi-structured interviews with stakeholders leading to policy planning suggestions. Findings Results demonstrated that the existence of cultural heritage or a historical site in a village has a direct impact on the prioritisation of indigenous CCIs from the perspective of the local community, tourists and governmental organisations. In this case, local authorities need to focus on the development of lesser-known cultural industries such as crafts or gastronomy by involving locals in decision-making processes that could be extendable to long-term tourism development planning. Originality/value Although the initiation of CCIs has led to new debates on the significance of co-creation experiences and cultural values in the tourism industry, it is criticised for creating social exclusion or unstable jobs. This research contributes to filling the gap between the potential of CCIs and rural tourism development from a policy perspective.