Kúpele Vyžne Ružbachy spa and San Giovanni spa are very well known spas located in Slovakia and in Italy. Both spas are surrounded by environmental and historical richness, including geological features that hold considerable potential for geotourism. In order to gauge the promotional value of these geological features, this study investigates: (a) The motivation of tourists for visiting the area, (b) the level of visitors’ interest and knowledge regarding the area’s geological features, (c) their assessment of the attractiveness and accessibility of these features, (d) their overall opinion about the area for geotourism, and (e) indications for utilizing these features to improve the landscape knowledge of the general public. The data were collected using on-site survey methods and examined by statistical analysis. Results of the survey show that the attraction of tourists to these areas is due not only to health and wellness benefits, but also to social aspects and the desire for exploring new places. It was found that the geological elements in both locations hold significant geotourism potential—and efforts to increase visitors’ awareness of their environmental and cultural significance could be decisive in capitalizing on the attraction of these unique sites. Improvement of the accessibility to the sites would be highly recommended as a way to increase tourism diversity.
Geodiversity is the natural diversity of features of geological structure, relief, and soil cover, including the relationships between these features, their properties, and their impact on other elements of the natural and cultural environment. It is described and analyzed using various types of quantitative, qualitative, or quantitative–qualitative methods. The concept of a geodiversity map presented in this article belongs to the third of these groups of methods. Despite the use of optimization methods in the form of a hexagon grid or the analytic hierarchy process calculator, it still remains partially subjective. The use of this method to calculate the geodiversity of an entire province (the Western Carpathians) gives a general view of the natural diversity of this area and allows regions to be selected for more detailed analyses or comparisons to be made between them. The geodiversity map is also a very good background on which to illustrate geotourist potential, which is expressed in terms of the number and distribution of geosites. However, in the case of the Western Carpathians, these two variables do not correlate with each other.
The aim of this paper is to propose, valorise and categorise the geosites in the Podtatrze Area (Southern Poland). There are 46 geosites available in geodatabases (PGI, PAS and AGH) at this area. The author suggests next 28 geopoints, which can be used in geotourism. They were valorised by the Pereira and Pereira (2010) and Rybár (2010) methods and categorised. This area contains multiple geotourism attractions including interesting flysch geological settings, landslides, peatbogs, limestone klippes, various types of rivers with small gorges and paleontological sites. The increase in the number of tourists in the Podtatrze region may additionally provide numerous tangible benefits in the future, including sustainable tourism, less "congestion" in the Tatra Mountains, more economic diversity and new job opportunities.Treść: Celem niniejszego artykułu jest przedstawienie, skategoryzowanie oraz waloryzacja geostanowisk znajdujących się w polskiej części Podtatrza (Polska południowa). Na badanym terenie, w dostępnych powszechnie geologicznych bazach danych (PIG--PIB, PAN, AGH), znajduje się 46 geostanowisk. Autorka artykułu proponuje kolejnych 28 obiektów, które mogą zostać wykorzystane w geoturystyce. Badany obszar zawiera różnorodne atrakcje geoturystyczne: odsłonięcia skalne, osuwiska, torfowiska, doliny rzeczne z przełomami. Proponowane geopunkty zostały zwaloryzowane za pomocą metod stworzonych przez Pereirę i Pereirę (2010) oraz Rybára (2010). Ciągle rosnąca liczba turystów na Podtatrzu może dostarczyć wielu wymiernych korzyści w przyszłości, do których zaliczyć należy turystykę zrównoważoną, rozwój gospodarki oraz nowe miejsca pracy.
Geotourism is a type of qualified tourism promoting geosites related to the geological outcrops and relief elements, such as river channels. Examples of these landforms with high educational values can be seen in the Białka and Skawa riverbeds. However, an important element in the description of such geosites (geomorphosites) is their educational values, which make it possible to clearly determine their suitability and possible use in geotourism. The assessment methods are the only methods of evaluating these values. But they are subjective, and the results of the analyses carried out on them largely depend on the knowledge and experience of the evaluator. In this paper, four geomorphosites have been assessed using the triangulation expert method. All described geomorphosites have received a high educational value, and the highest had the Białka Gorge.
Increasing human impact in mountain areas may constitute a challenge to national park authorities. Therefore, interdisciplinary research is important in order to address the various aspects of the functioning of protected areas. The purpose of the present study was to analyze perceptions of infrastructure and tourist traffic in the Tatra Mountains by tourist experts. Data were collected using the diagnostic survey method and in-depth interviews with experts. Statistical analysis included the use of the U-Mann-Whitney Test and the nonparametric Chi Square Test. Research has shown differences in the way both local transportation and restaurant services are viewed in the Polish and Slovakian parts of Tatras. Experts indicate that the main reason for increasing tourist traffic is that the Tatras are in fashion, while the key problem is excess litter generation.
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