Chinyero Volcanic Landscape Trail (Canary Islands, Spain): A Geotourism Proposal to Identify Natural and Cultural Heritage in Volcanic Areas

Abstract

The Chinyero Special Nature Reserve is located on the NW rift zone of Tenerife, between 600 and 1500 m above sea level. This natural setting is distinguished by a significant concentration of monogenetic basaltic volcanoes that have erupted in recent and historical times, including Garachico (1706) and Chinyero (1909). The volcanic landscapes of this protected area are part of the Canary Island pine forest ecosystem and, therefore, also feature beautiful forests colonising the newly formed layers of volcanic materials. The aim of this paper is to design a geographical route through the landscape for geotourism purposes, based on a global and coherent interpretation of the original physiognomy of a landscape that has been decisively shaped by volcanic phenomena. This nature trail represents a proposal for a new tourism product as an alternative to the traditional “sun and beach” coastal tourism product. This paper comprises a first stage, dedicated to the geographical study of the landscape, and a second stage focused on designing a geotourism route, which will identify and characterise the elements of the natural and cultural heritage of the area and its unique landforms.

Methodological Framework for Geodiversity Application in Geographic Education from a Case Study of Canary Islands, Spain

“…In this context, it is worth bearing in mind that the concepts of biodiversity and geodiversity depend on each other and their scientific importance is comparable (Alahuhta et al 2019, Ren et al 2021. The practical application of the geodiversity approach in inanimate nature conservation, for example in the form of geosites and geomorphosites (Dóniz-Páez et al 2016, Beltrán-yanes et al 2020 as well as its use in the design of hiking and educational trails, make the terms geodiversity and geoheritage take on great importance in geographical education.…”

The Concept of the Geotourism Potential and Its Practical Application: A Case Study of the Prządki (the Spinners) Nature Reserve in the Carpathians, Poland

“…Štrba [50] indicated, among other factors, the availability of tourist infrastructure as an element of geotourism potential. Recognized elements of geotourism potential include transport accessibility and tourism development [56], tourist availability, the presence of information panels and popular-science publications [48], the presence of educational products (e.g., maps, guidebooks, and guided tours), local products, and other crafts [7,57]. Sometimes the term is presented in two ways [56], as a set of inanimate natural and anthropogenically changed objects (natural rock forms, drifts, and post-mining excavations) or as specific features of the previously mentioned landscape elements (e.g., inactive quarries).…”

“…The necessity to equip a geotourism object with interpretative and service facilities for tourists is indicated by the various definitions of geotourism (Table 1) [2][3][4]. Such equipment includes a variety of geotourism products [25,57,62], such as geotourism trails and paths, geointerpretation panels, geoeducational centers, specialized geo-guide services, geotourism events, and the use of modern multimedia solutions. The creation of such products requires an analysis of the geotourism potential of a site (or area), and making these products available to the public helps to learn and understand the numerous inextricable relationships between the geological structure of the area, its shape, the features of its biodiversity, and its current cultural values [23,31].…”

“…The assessment of geotourism values, the geointerpretation of the Earth's heritage, and the creation of appropriate geoeducational tools are a subject of interest in geotourism developed as scientific research in geology [3,4]. Geography as an academic discipline also identifies and explains landscapes on the Earth's surface [57]. Scientists analyze and evaluate objects and areas in terms of their suitability for geotourism and geoeducation.…”

A Step towards a Sustainable Tourism in Apennine Mountain Areas: A Proposal of Geoitinerary across the Matese Mountains (Central-Southern Italy)

“…Among these, geological itineraries are a powerful tool for the dissemination of geosciences and geotourism development [26][27][28][29]. In fact, a consistent part of the recent and rich literature on geotourism concerns the proposal, design and/or illustration of geoitineraries [30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40], especially in Parks and/or Geoparks (i.e., [41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49]).…”