Introduction
Today, tourism has become one of the largest and most profitable economic sectors in the world (Higham & Luck, 2002:35). It is known as the third economic industry in the world (Oila et al, 2012:569). In this era, tourism is considered an effective factor in the expansion of relations between nations, and it is considered the creator of job opportunities in the economic sector and the creation of socio-cultural interactions (Pourahmad et al., 2013: 2). Considering the benefits of tourism, many countries consider this industry to be main source of income, employment, private sector growth, and infrastructure development (Lee, 2010:423). In this regard, rural tourism is also considered a part of the tourism industry, which can play an effective role in the development of these areas with proper and principled planning, identifying the advantages and limitations of rural tourism, and as a result, national development and diversification of the national economy. (Rumiani et al., 2018: 218). This problem has caused tourism villages to be noticed in recent years, and planners and policymakers are trying to make a lot of effort with new strategies in the direction of tourism. Therefore, due to the importance of tourism, on the one hand, this industry can be a tool for the development of rural areas (Lee & Chang, 2008) and on the other hand, it is an important factor in solving agricultural problems, increasing employment and increasing income level. Be social in the system of host societies (Elisabete and Raschi, 2013: 1) On this basis, the fundamental issue of the research, considering the lack of a comprehensive and systematic plan to exploit the existing capabilities in the tourist villages of the Maidan district of Khanaqin city, and also the effort to achieve the goals of sustainable rural development, was examined and identified as the central question of the present study. Obstacles and problems related to the underdevelopment of tourism in the studied villages, considering their abundant capabilities, were examined and identified.
 
 
Methodology
This research is applied in nature and descriptive-analytical in terms of its method. To collect the requisite information and data, document reviews and field studies, including interviews and questionnaires, have been utilized. The statistical population in this research comprises households in the villages targeted for tourism in the square sector. Due to the extensive nature of the study area, it was not feasible to collect data and information from all households in all villages. Therefore, considering the size of the villages, time constraints, and cost limitations, the Cochran formula was employed to determine the sample size from the entire statistical population of square (255 households). There are 153 individuals in the field of tourism, and the non-random sampling method is also employed. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics methods and SPSS software. To classify the obstacles to sustainable development of rural tourism in the Maidan district, the perspectives and opinions of tourists were utilized (given that the volume of incoming tourists is unknown and there are no documented statistics on this matter, considering the number of 9 villages and an average of 20 tourists in each village, it was estimated; therefore, the number of tourists calculated for this study is 180 individuals). Finally, factor analysis was employed to determine the amount of variance explained by each of the variables in the form of categorized factors.
Results
The results of the research indicated a relatively strong positive and significant correlation between educational and cultural barriers and issues associated with tourism development, whereby an increase in educational and cultural barriers corresponds to an increase in tourism development challenges. Environmental obstacles and issues rank second in importance, followed by infrastructure obstacles. Marketing and management barriers do not exhibit a significant relationship with the dependent variable; however, in the regression analysis, they demonstrate an augmentative effect on the deficiencies in tourism development.
 
Discussion and Conclusion
Rural tourism is recognized as an activity that not only plays a significant role in the development of the local economy but also serves as an integral component of the sustainable rural development strategy. In the discourse on rural tourism, the position of smart tourism in rural areas assumes a crucial and substantial role. Through the utilization of smart technologies, rural communities can enhance their business promotion and improve the quality of their tourism infrastructure. The most significant obstacles affecting sustainable rural development in the target tourism villages of the Maidan sector, as indicated by service-infrastructure indicators (0.181), educational-cultural factors (0.315), environmental considerations (0.220), marketing aspects (0.091), and management issues (0.113). On this basis, the combined infrastructure-welfare factor was introduced as the primary factor in the analysis and accounted for the highest amount of variance. However, the initial step towards developing rural tourism is the adequacy of development infrastructure, including: regional roads and communication routes, suitability of accommodation facilities and equipment, appropriateness of welfare facilities and equipment (such as restaurants), adequacy of health facilities and services (including health services and waste collection services), availability of suitable spaces for appropriate and secure parking of vehicles, and the presence of recreational and sports spaces (such as parks), all of which are of considerable importance.
Funding
There is no funding support.
Authors’ Contribution
Authors contributed equally to the conceptualization and writing of the article. All of the authors approved the content of the manuscript and agreed on all aspects of the work.
Conflict of Interest
The Authors declared no conflict of interest.
Acknowledgments
We are grateful to all the scientific consultants of this paper.