Abstract
Sustainable tourism management plans rely on relevant and consistent information about factors that can influence the decision to visit a protected area. This paper uses the choice experiment method to investigate tourists’ preferences with regard to recreational trip characteristics in national and natural parks in Romania. An on-site survey questionnaire was administered to visitors. The multinomial logit model was employed to investigate the preference orderings of the identified groups of recreational users. Overall, results indicate that tourists gain benefits after visiting the parks. Main preference differences were found for information sources and location of campsites. Visitors who stated that the park was the main trip destination were willing to have access to more information sources, the marks on trails being insufficient. Camping is preferred only in organized places, expressing the concern for environmental protection. The results of this study have management implications, highlighting the importance of assessing tourists’ preferences as a foundation for developing sustainable tourism strategies.
Highlights
National and natural parks provide a large variety of economic, environmental, and recreational benefits to visitors and surrounding communities [1,2], with tourism and recreation being the primary objectives, along with wilderness protection and maintenance of environmental services [3]
Practice shows that sustainability can be reached by integrating social, economic, and ecological goals in the management plans of the national and natural parks
The potential benefits of tourism in protected areas reside in enhancing economic opportunity, protecting the natural and cultural heritage, and enhancing quality of life [4]
Summary
National and natural parks provide a large variety of economic, environmental, and recreational benefits to visitors and surrounding communities [1,2], with tourism and recreation being the primary objectives, along with wilderness protection and maintenance of environmental services [3]. The increasing demand for recreation opportunities puts pressure on local authorities to immediately take long-term sustainable management actions that are in the benefit of both nature and the tourist. Economic sustainability requires management actions that generate sufficient revenues to cover the costs by minimizing the negative impacts of tourism on the natural heritage. The potential benefits of tourism in protected areas reside in enhancing economic opportunity, protecting the natural and cultural heritage, and enhancing quality of life [4]. Conservation of the natural and cultural heritage can be supported by demonstrating the economic value of the protected area [4]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
