Tourism In Natural Areas Research Articles

Structure of the natural recreation system

The article discusses the concept of a natural recreational system (NRS) as a set of interconnected areas of inaccessibility, tourists, regulatory authorities and service personnel. For the development of tourism in natural areas, it is necessary to study the connections between these subsystems, which determined the purpose of the study – to structure the NRS, for which it is necessary: to study the subsystem of tourists, engaged in various types of nature-oriented tourism; examine the subsystems of regulatory bodies and service personnel and determine their functions; to analyze the mutual influence of four NRS subsystems. The first subsystem includes areas of inaccessibility, on the territory of which different types of travel are carried out. The second subsystem consists of tourists traveling in areals of inaccessibility, where they are engaged in nature-oriented, active, sports, ecological and extreme tourism, as well as recreation. The third subsystem consists of bodies that control tourist processes in areas of inaccessibility. This includes the Ministry of Emergencies, which regulates the activities of search and rescue services responsible for search and rescue on the territory of Russia. Route qualification commissions are the controlling body of sports tourism. Insurance companies can interact with tourists involved in all types of nature tourism. The fourth subsystem is optional; it consists of service personnel and, in some cases, tourist infrastructure. At the same time, there are direct and feedback links between the subsystem of tourists and the subsystems of regulatory bodies and service personnel. There are only direct links between the tourist subsystem and areals of inaccessibility.

Ecological Tourism Development in the Mountainous Regions and Historical Railway Network Capacities. Case Study: Tehran-Mazandaran Old Railway by Crossing the Alborz Mountain Range

Ecological tourism or ecotourism (In abbreviation) is a form of tourism intended as a low impact on the environment and is based on the principles of sustainability in natural and historical areas with conservation characteristics. Railway tourism can be a form of ecological tourism that occurs in areas with presence of the railroad network. due to its novelty and proximity with natural and cultural heritage in the humid and rainy climate, This form of tourism can attract many tourists all around the world. The methodology of this study is descriptive and analytical, and initially, characteristics and requirements have been explained with resources and library studies The required infrastructures are the main bass of tourism, one of the most significant of which, is the current situation of the transportation system (railway network). The main aim of this study is the introduction of railway tourism as a strategy for development of railroad settlements in north of Iran with ecological and sustainable tourism. As the second aim, the most significant criteria of the railway-tourism were extracted from theoretical the foundation, in addition, their priority were specified by experts’ in AHP (Analytic hierarchy process) method. Moreover, in order to understand the restrictions and main problems of the local people, interviews have been conducted. In the following, Tehran – Mazandaran impassable mountainous railway has been introduced, that passes through the Alborz Mountains. This route has majority of unrivalled natural and cultural attractions, traditional habitation, and rural settlements. Despite recent spatial changes in Iran, these regions remained original and traditional. Interestingly, the railway is the only accessible transport to some of these settlements, without destructive effect on the environment. As the result, the substantial criteria were specified, and the basic issues and limitations of the locals’ life have been explained from survey and interviews. Consequently, a direct relationship has been detected between railway tourism and railroad habitation development in Tehran – Mazandaran railway that contains social, economic, physical and demographic studies. Eventually, it could be easily realized, which railway-tourism has the lowest ecological impacts despite other types of tourism in natural and rural areas. Therefore, every kind of effort from researchers to authorities in this field could be helpful in order to protect our environment.

Levantamiento de los recursos turísticos de la provincia del Cuando Cubango para apoyar el desarrollo local

Este estudio fue desarrollado en la Provincia de Cuando Cubango, en Angola, una región de África Austral con fuertes e intransponibles potenciales endógenos para desarrollarse a partir del uso racional del paisaje de su flora y fauna. El objetivo principal fue conseguir información necesaria para apoyar el diseño de estrategias para la promoción del turismo local. La recolección de datos fue hecha por el autor a lo largo de 6 años, tomando como base de la investigación el turismo en áreas naturales. Se ha levantado información sobre los recursos turísticos asociados a las especies animales y la fauna silvestre; la diversidad de la flora; el patrimonio histórico-cultural y las infraestructuras necesarias para fomentar el turismo. se eligieron 4 municipios de los nueve que la Provincia del Cuando Cubango posee, en particular: Menongue, Cuchi, Cuito Cuanavale y Dírico, donde se identificaron y caracterizaron 45 locales para la realización del turismo de naturaleza; 2 principales especies florísticas únicas en la región austral de África: el Mussivi y el Girassonde; 4 principales animales salvajes el León, Elefante, Hipopótamo y Búfalo, faltando confirmar la existencia del Rinoceronte.

Image Analysis to Monitor Experimental Trampling and Vegetation Recovery in Icelandic Plant Communities

With growing tourism in natural areas, monitoring recreational impacts is becoming increasingly important. This paper aims to evaluate how different trampling intensities affect some common Icelandic plant communities by using digital photographs to analyze and quantify vegetation in experimental plots and to monitor vegetation recovery rates over a consecutive three-year period. Additionally, it seeks to evaluate the use of image analysis for monitoring recreational impact in natural areas. Experimental trampling was conducted in two different sites representing the lowlands and the highlands in 2014, and the experimental plots were revisited in 2015, 2016, and 2017. The results show that moss has the highest sensitivity to trampling, and furthermore has a slow recovery rate. Moss-heaths in the highlands also show higher sensitivity and slower recovery rates than moss-heaths in the lowlands, and grasslands show the highest resistance to trampling. Both methods tested, i.e., Green Chromatic Coordinate (GCC) and Maximum Likelihood Classification (MLC), showed significant correlation with the trampling impact. Using image analysis to quantify the status and define limits of use will likely be a valuable and vital element in managing recreational areas. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) will add a robust way to collect photographic data that can be processed into vegetation parameters to monitor recreational impacts in natural areas.

Promoting sustainable tourism in rural and natural areas through small business innovation: the case of Atenor village (Northeast, Portugal)

Douro International is a cross-border mountainous region located between northeast Portugal and northwest Spain (see Figure 1). The Portuguese side is one of the most remote regions of the country....

Impactos del turismo en dos Parques Nacionales y áreas aledañas de Baja California, México: el caso de Sierra de San Pedro Mártir y Constitución de 1857

El turismo en espacios naturales es un fenómeno que se intensificó en las últimas décadas. El objetivo de este trabajo es identificar los impactos de esta actividad en los Parques Nacionales Sierra de San Pedro Mártir y Constitución de 1857. Para ello, se realizó observación directa y 18 entrevistas semiestructuradas a funcionarios y habitantes de las áreas de estudio. Entre los resultados más sobresalientes se identificaron los impactos al medio natural y la interacción entre funcionarios, habitantes locales y turistas, así como las diferencias y similitudes de los impactos entre ambos parques. Para las dos áreas de estudio se sugiere prestar atención en los impactos ecológicos, dado que los programas de desarrollo estatal promueven aumentar el número de visitantes en los parques sin considerar los daños que esto puede representar en sus ecosistemas. Hay escasos estudios a nivel nacional que abarquen aspectos sociales y económicos del turismo en áreas naturales, por ello se recomienda trabajar más en estos ámbitos.

Combining remote sensing and on-site monitoring methods to investigate footpath erosion within a popular recreational heathland environment

Footpaths are a prominent consequence of natural area tourism and reflect damage caused to valuable, sensitive habitats by people pressure. Degradation impacts on vegetation, wildlife, on and off-site soil movement and loss, creation of additional informal off-path footpaths (desire lines), and visual destruction of landscapes. Impacts need to be measured and monitored on a large temporal and spatial scale to aid in land management to maintain access and preserve natural environments. This study combined remote sensing (Light Detection and Ranging [LiDAR] and aerial photography) with on-site measurement of footpaths within a sensitive heathland habitat (Land's End, Cornwall, UK). Soil loss, slope angle change, vegetation damage and a hydrology model were combined to comprehensively study the site. Results showed 0.09 m mean soil loss over five years, footpath widening, increasing grass cover into heathland, and water channelling on the footpaths exacerbating erosion. The environments surrounding the footpaths were affected with visitors walking off path, requiring further management and monitoring. Multiple remote sensing techniques were highly successful in comprehensively assessing the area, particularly the hydrology model, demonstrating the potential of providing a valuable objective and quantitative monitoring and management tool.

El agroecoturismo: un enfoque territorial del turismo en espacios rurales y naturales

El presente trabajo tiene como propósito realizar un acercamiento al concepto del agroecoturismo como tipología turística en espacios rurales y analizar las características del agroecoturismo desde un enfoque de territorial. Se hizo uso de un tipo de estudio documental a partir de la revisión bibliográfica de la literatura en la materia del turismo rural y del turismo en espacios naturales, y de enfoque territorial. En lo expuesto se presenta el agroecoturismo como una opción de descanso y recreación que puede realizarse en espacios rurales y naturales, dentro de lo que se conoce como turismo alternativo. Se llega a la conclusión de que este enfoque del turismo rural, reúne los elementos territoriales para ofrecer al turista un producto enmarcado en los principios y dimensiones sociales, económicas y ambientales del desarrollo sostenible. El agroecoturismo, puede fungir como un eje articulador que potencia el desarrollo endógeno de las comunidades locales, contribuye a la conservación del medio ambiente e impulsa la diversificación de ingresos en zonas rurales, susceptibles a los riesgos de los mercados agrícolas, donde las explotaciones agropecuarias y los atributos naturales presentes, pueden conformar una oferta atractiva de turismo.

Planning and management challenges of tourism in natural protected areas in baja california, mexico

Planning and management challenges of tourism in natural protected areas in baja california, mexico

Roles of intangible cultural heritage in tourism in natural protected areas

ABSTRACTThe ‘new paradigm’ for protected areas emphasizes communities and their cultural assets, including intangible cultural heritage, as critical and inseparable parts of these areas. As tourism can be a significant factor in the economic framework of natural protected areas (NPAs), the prominent role of the community can have important implications. This paper reports on one of the first empirical studies on the interaction between intangible cultural heritage and tourism in an NPA with a special focus on the role of intangible cultural heritage. It is based on six months of qualitative ethnographic fieldwork in Qeshm Geopark, in the South of Iran. Local intangible cultural heritage is found to manifest and be used in tourism in three distinct ways: First, as a source of attraction and addition to any tourism offerings; second, as conservation tool, especially where the natural environment has strong cultural meanings for the local community; and third, as a driver for facilitating culturally and naturally sensitive behaviour by visitors. Concluding statements address any conceptual and practical implications.

Evolutionary and socio-cultural influences on feelings and attitudes towards nature: a cross-cultural study

ABSTRACTMounting environmental issues have prompted reconsideration of the human–nature relationship. Accordingly, attitudes to nature, as an important dimension of human–nature interactions, have become a research focus. How feelings and attitudes towards nature are influenced by evolutionary and social-cultural constructions, and whether there is variation between different cultural groups, demands more attention. Using a survey of visitors to two very different National Parks, the New Forest National Park, England and Jiuzhaigou Scenic Area, China, this paper shows that of nationality and living environment, differences between the two nationalities were significant in respect of both attitudes and feelings. Specifically, it demonstrates that the biophilia thesis, which purports that people have an innate and a genetically inherited need for affiliation with nature, is influenced by their socio-cultural environment, in particular their national culture, but also by their current living place. The study contributes to our understanding of sustainable tourism in natural areas.

Экологический туризм на ООПТ в Российской Арктике: перспективы и проблемы

Экологический туризм на ООПТ в Российской Арктике: перспективы и проблемы

The contribution of cultural ecosystem services to understanding the tourism–nature–wellbeing nexus

The benefits provided by natural resources and their relationship with human well-being have been explored through the literature in diverse ways. Most significant in these discussions is the role of nature in fostering psychological well-being by relieving the human mind of stress, restoring cognitive capabilities and promoting feelings of rejuvenation. Tourism and leisure experiences in natural areas provide a unique opportunity for people to engage with nature and to benefit from these engagements in such ways. This discussion paper argues that a more nuanced understanding of the tourism–nature–well-being nexus can be achieved by employing the concept of cultural ecosystem services to understand how benefits from nature arise for people and what they mean for them. Cultural services are defined by the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2003) as the 'non-material benefits that people obtain from ecosystems' and important overlaps can be identified with the ingredients understood to be required for psychological well-being. It is argued here that by aligning these concepts more closely, a deeper appreciation is possible of the ways in which nature tourism interactions influence human well-being. The paper will draw on empirical evidence from the Jurassic Coast (UK) to illustrate how benefits arise in the context of tourism to a coastal setting and how a proposed cultural ecosystems framework helps to make sense of them. It argues also that cultural ecosystem services and psychological well-being play an important role in tourist motivation and satisfaction and as such, they should be more central in tourism management.Management implications: This paper provides original insights into how a cultural ecosystem services framework can help to make sense of the tourism–nature–wellbeing nexus. This perspective advocates an approach to environmental and tourism management which not only takes into account human impacts on natural resources but also how natural resources impact on human psychological well-being. This provides a novel lens through which to manage tourism activity such as by ensuring maximum opportunities for sustainable engagements with nature. Tourism management can also benefit from understanding the importance of these ‘non-material benefits of nature’ in tourist motivations, expectations, behaviours and levels of satisfaction.

Tourism and conservation in Madagascar: The importance of Andasibe National Park

Madagascar is renowned for high levels of biodiversity and endemism. As a result of its unique flora and fauna, as well as the high levels of human threat to the environment, such as illegal clearing, hunting and political instability, it is a critical global conservation priority. Andasibe–Mantadia National Park in eastern Madagascar is one of the most popular protected areas visited by tourists. Observations carried out in 2011 showed that even though there were some negative impacts associated with natural-area tourism, the benefits to both the local communities and associated biological conservation outweighed the negatives. Natural-area tourism at Andasibe is well organised, with many local guide associations having partnerships with international organisations and 50% of park fees going directly to local communities. Forest loss is a widespread problem in Madagascar, but at Andasibe the forest is valued for its ecological function and as a generator of profits from natural-area tourism. Exploitation of the park was not observed. Andasibe is an example of how conservation and natural-area tourism can work together in Madagascar for the benefit of local communities and the environment. However, with the current unstable political climate and lack of adequate wider tourism and conservation planning frameworks, awakening to its potential as a leading conservation tourism destination will not be a simple task. Conservation implications: This research demonstrated that ecotourism can be an effective means of achieving conservation objectives, whilst, at the same time, improving the livelihoods of local people. We caution, however, that governments can do a lot more to encourage and support the nexus between tourism and conservation.

The Effect of Place Attachment on Pro-environment Behavioral Intentions of Visitors to Coastal Natural Area Tourist Destinations

It has been hypothesized that as individuals become attached to a place, they are more likely to protect that place. Managers of natural area tourism destinations may be able to use this relationship to assist in sustainably managing such places. An on-site visitor survey was administered at Ningaloo Marine Park, Australia, to examine the effect of a multi-dimensional place attachment construct on pro-environment behavioral intentions. The behaviors encompassed three categories based on the perceived level of commitment and where the behaviors physically occurred. They included on-site actions by visitors, visitors telling others how to act on-site, and off-site actions to conserve the Marine Park. Structural equation modeling revealed place identity directly affecting all three behavioral categories, the effect increasing with the level of commitment required to undertake the pro-environment behaviors. This suggests that a sophisticated understanding of place identity is essential for the management of natural area tourism destinations.

Book Review - Natural Area Tourism – Ecology, Impacts and Management

Book Review - Natural Area Tourism – Ecology, Impacts and Management

An ‘ecotourist's recent experience in Sri Lanka

David Newsome is an Associate Professor at Murdoch University in Perth, Australia. His research interests span many areas of natural area tourism including wildlife tourism, biophysical impacts of ...

Natural area tourism: ecology, impacts and management

The book covers all facets of tourism in natural areas. The book is underpinned by a strong foundation of environmental understanding. It then describes the range of impacts, which occur when tourism takes place in the natural environment and illustrates how managers can plan, develop and appropriately manage tourism developments in natural areas. Finally, the book addresses ongoing management concerns such as monitoring environmental change and the need to introduce appropriate management strategies.

Challenges for Tourism in Natural Areas – Cost of Carbon and Natural Disasters

Tourism involves travel, and travelling is inherently dependent on carbon-based fuel. The low cost of carbon fuels resulted in massive expansions of global tourism with many countries now depending on tourism exports for their national economies. However, oil is a finite resource and tourism’s dependence on it creates major vulnerabilities. It is also increasingly recognised that to combat man-made global climate change it is essential to put a price on carbon, for example through carbon taxes or Emissions Trading Schemes. The implications of a diminishing availability of cheap carbon-based fuel are extremely complex and far reaching, both for society as a whole and for tourism.

Projection of tourist scenarios onto fragility maps: Framework for determination of provisional tourist carrying capacity in a Brazilian show cave

Traditionally, the concept of tourist carrying capacity has been understood as a tool for planning tourism in natural areas. As such it has focused on quantifying impacts that are consistent with maintaining a specific environment. In this article tourist carrying capacity is considered from a different viewpoint in a case study of a Brazilian show cave, the Diabo cave, near Eldorado city, São Paulo state. In this instance decisions concerning tourism had been based primarily on the advantages that tourism could provide in maintaining economic-administrative sustainability and community support. More recently, other factors based on natural limitations have been considered in a process of participative discussion among stakeholders seeking to preserve the caves and their sustainable usage. This process led to the conclusion that the carrying capacity of the caves should be flexible, conditioned by protocols of environmental monitoring with reference to levels of demand. Such monitoring, it is hoped, will permit the adjustment of the initial cave limits as a function of changes in the patterns of consumption, local realities, and the identification of unanticipated yet unacceptable environmental impacts.