Visitor Use Research Articles

The mountains are calling, but will visitors go? Modeling the effect of weather and air quality on visitation to Pacific Northwest parks and protected areas using mobile device data

We investigated how visitors to federal, state, and local parks and protected areas (PPAs) respond to weather and air quality conditions in the Pacific Northwest (PNW), United States. Specifically, we modeled the relationship between weekly visitation and mean weekly minimum and maximum temperature, precipitation, Air Quality Index (AQI), and particulate matter 2.5 concentration (PM2.5, often used as an indicator of wildfire smoke) during an extended peak visitation season from 2017 to 2021 in 91 PNW PPAs. We used mobile device data from StreetLight Data Inc. to estimate weekly vehicular visitation. Our findings indicate that increasing precipitation corresponded with decreased weekly visitation to all three types of PPAs and rising minimum temperatures corresponded with increased visitation. We found that rising maximum temperatures corresponded with increased visitation in federal and local PPAs, but corresponded with decreased visitation in local PPAs once temperatures reach a maximum threshold. We did not observe a maximum threshold effect in federal or state settings. Further, we found that the effect of air quality and smoke on visitation varies based on the metric used: increased PM2.5 concentrations (possibly indicating the presence of wildfire smoke) in federal and local PPAs corresponded with decreased visitation, while increased AQI in federal PPAs corresponded with increased visitation. These findings indicate that visitors may respond differently to different types of air pollution. Our results have implications for adapting peak- and shoulder- season visitor use management to current and future climate change within and beyond PPAs of the PNW.

The magic of audio-visual integration in simulated crowding images of culture-oriented tourism destinations: an eye-tracking analysis on tourists’ visual attention and behavioural intentions

ABSTRACT Despite tourists' multi-sensory experience has received increasing attention, research on the collective effects of auditory stimuli and visual attention in cultural-oriented tourism destination remains scant. This study explores how environmental stimuli and tourists' visual attention affect tourists' willingness to stay under high-crowding and low-crowding scenarios in cultural-oriented destinations. Employing eye-tracking experiments and self-report survey methods, this study demonstrates that light sound has positive effects on tourists' willingness to stay. Furthermore, the effects of light music and human-noise on behavioural intention in indoor scenarios are mediated by visual attention. This study makes several significant contributions. First, it deepens the understanding of multi-sensory tourism experiences within culture-oriented tourism contexts by examining how tourists respond to crowding scenarios through both visual and auditory stimuli, an aspect often overlooked in visitor use management studies. Second, it extends the stimulus-organism-response (SOR) model by integrating the combined effects of visual and auditory cues, offering a more comprehensive perspective on tourists' sensory experiences. Third, it provides practical implications for mitigating perceived crowding by integrating audio stimuli to culture-oriented destination pictures. These findings provide valuable insights for visitor use management framework in cultural tourism destinations, particularly from the perspective of multi-sensory experiences.

A Park Management Perspective for Co-designing a Visitor Monitoring Plan in Remote Marine Protected Areas: A Case Study of Lalang-gaddam Marine Park, Western Australia

Globally, coastal and marine protected areas have seen significant increases in visitation. Visitors are able to access marine protected areas from multiple ingress points, making monitoring difficult. Yet managers need to establish techniques to monitor visitor use and identify change over time to ensure sustainable management for their protected areas. Lalang-gaddam Marine Park in the Kimberley region, Western Australia, has experienced increased visitation as the Kimberley’s reputation as a premier nature-based tourism destination with vibrant Aboriginal culture grows. To better understand and manage the growth in visitors, park management identified the need for a marine Visitor Monitoring Plan. To facilitate the development of the Plan, a desktop literature review was conducted to identify the suite of methods available that might assist monitoring visitors in marine protected areas with consideration to their applicability in the Australian marine context. The methods were then workshopped to design and implement the Visitor Monitoring Plan for Lalang-gaddam Marine Park as rapid growth in tourism has resulted in concern by government managing agencies, joint management Traditional Owners, commercial tourism operators, and the community. The aim of this article is twofold: to assist marine protected area managers in identifying pertinent methods and to codesign and assess the first Visitor Monitoring Plan in a joint management context in the Kimberley.

Assessing the effects of climate and visitor use on amphibian occupancy in a protected landscape with long‐term data

AbstractDetermining where animals are, and if they are persisting across protected landscapes, is necessary to implement appropriate management and conservation actions. For long‐lived animals and those with boom‐and‐bust life histories, perspective across time contributes to discerning temporal trends in occupancy and persistence, and potentially in identifying mechanisms affecting those parameters. Long‐term data are particularly useful in protected areas to quantify indicators of change that may be less obvious or occur more slowly. We used long‐term amphibian data from Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) in a Bayesian occupancy modeling framework to estimate changes in occupancy, colonization, and persistence of amphibians over three decades and to explore the effects of climate, landscape change, and visitor use as mechanisms behind observed changes. Our results indicate that colonization and persistence are low and/or declining for Pseudacris maculata, Lithobates sylvaticus, and Ambystoma mavortium, and that occupied catchments are increasingly isolated. We found visitor use to have a consistently negative effect on occupancy and persistence of amphibians in RMNP, and that all species are more likely to occupy catchments with more complex habitat and a higher proportion of wetlands. While these results are sobering, they also provide a way forward where mitigation efforts can target identified drivers of change.

Shadows of Perception: The Role of Photographic Context in Visitor Use Management Research

The unrelenting visitation to national parks calls for the continued understanding of how certain conditions shape the visitor experience and for researchers to apply the best visitor-use management practices. This study investigated perceptions of crowding, specifically using photographic panels and the possible influence of extraneous variables in those photographs. Surveys were conducted at a national park in which participants were asked to rate the acceptability of people at one time (PAOT) on a trail at a popular overlook. Participants were given one of two sets of photographic panels depicting two different skyscapes, a Bright Sky and a Gray Sky. Respondents who were given the Gray Sky photographs reported lower levels of acceptability of PAOT compared to the Bright Sky respondents. This underscores the need to further examine how extraneous variables (e.g. environmental conditions) in photographs used for visitor-use management research may influence participant responses.

Can Citizen Scientists Contribute to Trail Assessment and Monitoring Programs? An Empirical Evaluation of Data Congruence and Overall Efficacy.

Citizen science has been increasingly utilized for monitoring resource conditions and visitor use in protected areas. However, the quality of data provided by citizen scientists remains a major concern that hinders wider applications in protected area management. We evaluated a prototype, citizen science-based trail assessment and monitoring program in Hong Kong using an integrated evaluative approach with a specific focus on the congruence of data collected by trained volunteers and managers. Datasets were evaluated in two ways. First, we compared differences in average values and standard deviations for measured trail indicators across all 30 sampling points. Second, we explored how result patterns characterized by the coefficients of variation and statistical significance differed for data collected by managers and volunteers at each sampling point or trail feature. Results revealed that the two trail assessment methods (one by volunteers, the other by managers) yielded incongruent data for some variables (e.g., trail width and maximum incision depth), but not others (e.g., Trail problems of erosions and multiple trail treads). Results of group interviews also revealed some possible factors that may have led to incongruent results, such as lack of experience and different perceptions between volunteers and managers in recognizing trail problems. While this study shows the potential value of citizen science-based monitoring programs, further steps are recommended to enhance the quality and usability of citizen science data to support effective trail monitoring and management.

Integrating importance- performance analysis into transboundary natural resource management of water trails: Case study at the Chattahoochee river national recreation area water trail in Atlanta, GA (USA)

Integrating importance- performance analysis into transboundary natural resource management of water trails: Case study at the Chattahoochee river national recreation area water trail in Atlanta, GA (USA)

Visitor motivations and use of Information communication technology at a coastal destination: the case of limbe – Cameroon

Visitor motivations and use of Information communication technology at a coastal destination: the case of limbe – Cameroon

Gateway community stakeholders’ perceived impacts of protected area management actions: The case of North Carolina (U.S.) state parks

Gateway community stakeholders’ perceived impacts of protected area management actions: The case of North Carolina (U.S.) state parks

US National Park Service and concession staff perceptions regarding waste management in Yosemite, Grand Teton, and Denali National Parks

Each year, over 45,000 metric tons of waste are generated in US national parks through a variety of means, including park operations, visitation, and other sources. In an effort to address these impacts, the National Park Service (NPS) has partnered with commercial and non-profit organizations to implement the Zero Landfill Initiative (ZLI). The goal of the ZLI is to realize a steady decrease in waste generated in parks, and an increase in materials being sent for recycling. Through this initiative and aligning research, efforts to mitigate waste and recycling issues with visitors is underway; however, to date there have been no attempts to understand the perspectives of those individuals who manage these parks on a daily basis. This study explored Theory of Planned Behavior-based constructs regarding disposal of waste and recycling using surveys with NPS employees and park concession staff in Yosemite, Grand Teton, and Denali National Parks. Results indicate that perceived difficulty and moral norms related to disposal of waste and recycling are significant drivers of self-reported behavior and intent with NPS and concession staff. Generally, concession staff perceptions align with the goals of ZLI more than those of NPS staff. This research adds to the limited understanding of land mana­ger perceptions, and results provide justification for future messaging and trainings that could improve sustainable management of these and other NPS units in the future. Keywords: Park Management; Visitor Use; Recycling; Waste Management; Communication; Human Behavior; Leave No Trace

Implementation of a public use management model in Argentinian National Parks: Lessons learned

This year marks 200 years of diplomatic relations between the United States and Argentina, which has involved cooperation across a wide range of fields, including tourism. In the interest of finding new approaches to improve the capacity of nation­al parks for public use planning and management and develop mutually beneficial ways to deliver higher-quality visitor experiences, the United States of America Embassy in Buenos Aires, the George Wright Society, the US National Park Service, and the Administration of National Parks in Argentina proposed the “Binational Exchange Program to Enhance Visitor Experiences in National Parks” as a co-learning exchange between the two countries. Through a critical review, this article focuses on the application and adaptation of the US Interagency Visitor Use Management Framework for public use management in five national parks in Argentina. The article offers an overview of the framework, summarizes the project developed with the parks, and, more importantly, discusses lessons learned and recommendations for future implementation of the model in Argentina and, possibly, other countries in Latin America.

Integrating User-Generated Content (UGC) with the Normative Approach to Define Indicators of Quality for Visitor Experience at Archaeodestinations

ABSTRACT Various ‘management-by-objectives’ frameworks for visitor use management have evolved to balance enhancing visitor experiences with preserving heritage resources at archaeodestinations. These frameworks employ a normative approach, identifying specific indicators to assess visitor experience quality and resource conditions, along with associated thresholds that denote acceptable conditions. Traditionally, the normative approach for assessing visitor experience quality primarily relied on on-site questionnaires and face-to-face interviews. However, with the proliferation of online platforms like TripAdvisor, managers of archaeodestinations must adapt their strategies to leverage User-Generated Content (UGC) for evaluating visitor experiences. Embracing a novel methodology, this research integrates UGC with the normative approach to develop indicators for visitor experience at Petra World Heritage site in Jordan. A content analysis of 618 reviews posted on TripAdvisor was conducted, providing valuable insights into the visitor experience at Petra and assisting in developing potential indicators of quality for the site. Related methodological and managerial implications and recommendations are also discussed.

The risk of contact between visitors and Borrelia burgdorferi-infected ticks is associated with fine-scale landscape features in a southeastern Canadian nature park

BackgroundInfectious diseases are emerging across temperate regions of the world, and, for some, links have been made between landscapes and emergence dynamics. For tick-borne diseases, public parks may be important exposure sites for people living in urbanized areas of North America and Europe. In most cases, we know more about the ecological processes that determine the hazard posed by ticks as disease vectors than we do about how human population exposure varies in urban natural parks.MethodsIn this study, infrared counters were used to monitor visitor use of a public natural park in southern Quebec, Canada. A risk index representing the probability of encounters between humans and infected vectors was constructed. This was done by combining the intensity of visitor trail use and the density of infected nymphs obtained from field surveillance. Patterns of risk were examined using spatial cluster analysis. Digital forest data and park infrastructure data were then integrated using spatially explicit models to test whether encounter risk levels and its components vary with forest fragmentation indicators and proximity to park infrastructure.ResultsResults suggest that, even at a very fine scales, certain landscape features and infrastructure can be predictors of risk levels. Both visitors and Borrelia burgdorferi-infected ticks concentrated in areas where forest cover was dominant, so there was a positive association between forest cover and the risk index. However, there were no associations between indicators of forest fragmentation and risk levels. Some high-risk clusters contributed disproportionately to the risk distribution in the park relative to their size. There were also two high-risk periods, one in early summer coinciding with peak nymphal activity, and one in early fall when park visitation was highest.ConclusionsHere, we demonstrate the importance of integrating indicators of human behaviour visitation with tick distribution data to characterize risk patterns for tick-borne diseases in public natural areas. Indeed, understanding the environmental determinants of human-tick interactions will allow organisations to deploy more effective risk reduction interventions targeted at key locations and times, and improve the management of public health risks associated with tick-borne diseases in public spaces.

Predicting trail condition using random forest models in urban-proximate nature reserves

Predicting trail condition using random forest models in urban-proximate nature reserves

Managing visitor flows in protected areas in a context of changing mobilities: An analysis of challenges, responses, and learned lessons during the pandemic in Tarragona Province (Spain)

Managing visitor flows in protected areas in a context of changing mobilities: An analysis of challenges, responses, and learned lessons during the pandemic in Tarragona Province (Spain)

Visitor Use and Activities Detected Using Trail Cameras at Forest Restoration Sites

Visitor Use and Activities Detected Using Trail Cameras at Forest Restoration Sites

Using cellular device location data to estimate visitation to public lands: Comparing device location data to U.S. National Park Service's visitor use statistics.

Understanding human use of public lands is essential for management of natural and cultural resources. However, compiling consistently reliable visitation data across large spatial and temporal scales and across different land managing entities is challenging. Cellular device locations have been demonstrated as a source to map human activity patterns and may offer a viable solution to overcome some of the challenges that traditional on-the-ground visitation counts face on public lands. Yet, large-scale applicability of human mobility data derived from cell phone device locations for estimating visitation counts to public lands remains unclear. This study aims to address this knowledge gap by examining the efficacy and limitations of using commercially available cellular data to estimate visitation to public lands. We used the United States' National Park Service's (NPS) 2018 and 2019 monthly visitor use counts as a ground-truth and developed visitation models using cellular device location-derived monthly visitor counts as a predictor variable. Other covariates, including park unit type, porousness, and park setting (i.e., urban vs. non-urban, iconic vs. local), were included in the model to examine the impact of park attributes on the relationship between NPS and cell phone-derived counts. We applied Pearson's correlation and generalized linear mixed model with adjustment of month and accounting for potential clustering by the individual park units to evaluate the reliability of using cell data to estimate visitation counts. Of the 38 parks in our study, 20 parks had a correlation of greater than 0.8 between monthly NPS and cell data counts and 8 parks had a correlation of less than 0.5. Regression modeling showed that the cell data could explain a great amount of the variability (conditional R-squared = 0.96) of NPS counts. However, these relationships varied across parks, with better associations generally observed for iconic parks. While our study increased our confidence in using cell phone data to estimate visitation, we also became aware of some of the limitations and challenges which we present in the Discussion.

Recreation on the Battlefield: Planning for Shifting Visitor Use at Monocacy National Battlefield

Outdoor recreation is increasing worldwide, driving recreationists to seek new sites for active leisure pursuits. Recreational use at sites of cultural significance (i.e., historic battlefields) may conflict with their primary legislated purpose, diverting financial and human resources. We documented this process at Monocacy National Battlefield, a U.S. National Park Service site in an urbanizing region of the State of Maryland. A novel mixed-methods approach included a 1) scoping review of relevant peer-reviewed literature; 2) an anonymized, spatiotemporal analysis of visitor trips and place of residence; and 3) cross-sectional, on-site visitor survey of local and destination visitors using an Importance-Performance Analysis. Results illustrate a significant segment of local visitors and recent growth in trips to sites other than the battlefield visitor center. Local visitors were also significantly more likely to identify higher importance to recreation-related facilities, services, and park attributes. While population growth slowed in the recent decade within Frederick County, future increases may yield potential for conflict between recreational and historic uses. Triangulating spatiotemporal and survey-based methods can assist managers in understanding recreation demand in similar units experiencing scope creep to inform iterative outreach, monitoring, planning, and adaptive management to respond to changing demography.

A data-driven and generalizable model for classifying outdoor recreation opportunities at multiple spatial extents

A data-driven and generalizable model for classifying outdoor recreation opportunities at multiple spatial extents

Importance Performance Competitor Analysis for Comprehensive Assessment of National Forest Visitor Satisfaction

Public lands are an important source of outdoor recreation opportunities. These opportunities provide a variety of public benefits, including promoting physical and mental well-being, contributing to local economies, and raising conservation awareness. In response to current and potential demand, it is ever more important to meet and anticipate infrastructure and user needs. With aging infrastructure (e.g., trails, access points, parking lots), managers face the need to maintain existing, and establish new, recreation opportunities to meet user expectations and contribute to positive perceptions of recreation offerings within the realities of budgetary challenges. Compounding this difficulty is the frequent presence of hierarchical decision-making process within public agencies providing recreation opportunities. For example, within the U.S. Forest Service National Forest System (NFS), recreation investment decisions, such as those under the Great American Outdoors Act, are often made at the regional administrative level after considering the needs and conditions across multiple NFS units within the region. While certain aspects of infrastructure can be measured for quality (i.e., physical attributes like trail conditions), it is difficult to quantify psychological elements of user satisfaction. Recreationist satisfaction is important to promoting supportive and engaged users of public lands. Therefore, a priority for management is understanding how user experiences compare to expectations. Direct ratings from surveys can be useful proxies of user perceptions. For decades, Importance-Performance Analysis (IPA) has translated importance and satisfaction ratings to action plans, a valuable management tool in valid application. However, IPA treats each unit as an “island,” and doesn’t fully address the challenge of comparing conditions and needs across units. A variation of IPA, known as Importance Performance Competitor Analysis (IPCA), compares a focal unit against a competitor. Using the National Visitor Use Monitoring Program (NVUM) satisfaction survey module, we adapted IPCA to the NFS regional organizations. Rather than analyzing unit versus competitor, we assessed each unit against its complementary regional aggregate over several points in time. A classification-based percentage identified the highest priorities regionally, selecting attributes for follow-up with IPA to identify relevant units for management. For two NFS regions, we present examples of translating survey output to reports meaningful for management, either as a snapshot in time or across multiple time points. These methodologies are adaptable to other unit networks under the same managerial oversight, with Likert scale data collected on multiple time periods. The primary objective is to translate survey data to recommended actions over a hierarchical network, which can guide managers in prioritizing needs and sustainable planning. In our examples, we identified region-level priorities (i.e., attributes) by site type, followed by use of a longstanding methodology (IPA) for site-level identification potentially useful to managers.