Abstract
Hiking is a very popular outdoor activity, and has led to an exponential increase in the number of visitors to natural spaces. The objective of this study was to analyze the circulation pattern of visitors to the Caminito del Rey trail, based on the three zones into which the trail can be divided. The sample consisted of 1582 hikers distributed into three different profiles. Of these, 126 utilized an eye-tracking device during the hike, while, for the rest (1456), only their travel speed along the trail was recorded. The use of eye tracking devices identified a greater number of interesting landscapes located in zones 1 and 3 of the trail, and it was observed that the mean travel speed was greater for zone 2 (42.31 m/min) (p < 0.01). Additionally, when the three different visitor profiles were analyzed, significant differences were found between the mean travel speeds according to sectors (p < 0.05). This information is crucial for more efficient management of the trail, as it allows for the development of measures to control and regulate the flow of visitors according to zone, and the design of additional strategies to increase the awareness of the hiker about specific areas of the hike.
Highlights
The results found in this study showed that there was a greater hiker attendance at the Caminito del Rey (CR) natural attraction in the early morning hours
A clear difference was detected in the trend of hiker accumulation according to the zones into which the trail was divided. This information is highly relevant, as it could be used by the trail managers for the equilibrated design of the visits according to zones and time slots
It was verified that zone S2 maintained its probability of having the lowest hiker accumulation at all time slots, so that it could be a key area for the management and regulation of the flow of visitors, and for facilitating the resting of the guides within the CR
Summary
Nature tourism has become one of the most desired leisure experiences [1,2], which has resulted in the exponential increase in activities performed outdoors [3,4].Within the great choice of activities that can be performed in a natural environment, hiking should be highlighted, as it is considered one of the most popular leisure activities in the world [2,5,6,7,8].Collins-Kreiner and Kliot [9] define hiking as a simple way of moving at a slow pace, characterized by the existence of intermittent relationships between people, as well as between people and their environment. Within the great choice of activities that can be performed in a natural environment, hiking should be highlighted, as it is considered one of the most popular leisure activities in the world [2,5,6,7,8]. According to Mohd-Taher et al [10], hiking has become a very lucrative business, because tour operators sell complete packages of guided visits in natural areas. This allows greater visibility and access to areas, natural parks, and/or mountain regions, which would otherwise not be available to the public. The access to remote natural areas that have great biodiversity or some type of feature in the landscape to be observed translates into an increase in the number of visits [9,11,12,13,14,15]
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