Environmental Attitudes and Tourist Satisfaction in Overloaded Natural Protected Areas

Abstract

Positive attitudes toward the natural environment are supposedly associated with higher levels of satisfaction in the visitation of natural protected areas. However, this relationship has not yet been thoroughly investigated. A reasonable alternative hypothesis can be considered in the case of overloaded natural protected areas (i.e., with high levels of visitation and infrastructure). Too many people and abundant facilities in natural areas could eliminate the effect of the pro-environmental attitude on satisfaction. Environmentalist visitors might feel the area has been spoilt by crowds and overconstruction, or simply they might not find the close contact with nature they were looking for. These concurrent hypotheses were tested using data from 434 interviews conducted with long-haul tourists visiting the Iguaçu National Park in Brazil. The results showed that, despite the crowds and large-scale infrastructure in the park, environmentalists are still more satisfied than nonenvironmentalists with the visitation experience. Managerial implications are discussed.

User Satisfaction and Crowding at Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary

“…Studies in ecotourism also showed that finding megafaunas and inspiring ecosystems are key expressive attributes of satisfaction in protected areas; other factors can include tranquility and conservation of natural heritage [23]. This research also showed that positive attitudes toward the natural environment are associated with higher levels of satisfaction in the visitation of natural protected areas [59]. Different people might have different reactions to the same environment [60], therefore, as a suggestion for future research directions in this field, we recommend a study that identifies differences in satisfaction levels between people with pro-environmental values and those with anti-environmental values.…”

Who Should You Market to in a Crisis? Examining Plog’s Model during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…As such, featuring adventures such as their "Little Havana Food and Walking Tour" or "La Perle de Miami: Little Haiti Tour" (Viator 2021), neither of which would be attractive to Psychocentrics, could provide the more adventurous traveler, who in normal times would be more likely to visit Havana or Port-au-Prince, a strong motivation to visit the city. Lobo 2020). Reminding these more venturous visitors, who will be avoiding air travel, that they will find lots of room to stay distanced while enjoying the beach and fresh air of the outdoors might provide sufficient incentive to hop in the car and make the drive to the destination.…”

Calcerous Tufa as Invaluable Geotopes Endangered by (Over-)Tourism: A Case Study in the UNESCO Global Geopark Swabian Alb, Germany

“…First, the access to vulnerable sites has to be restricted. Such restrictions have been applied not only in the UNESCO Global Geopark Swabian Alb, but also at Plitvice (Croatia) or Pamukkale (Turkey) to cite just two examples, in order to reduce the impact [107]. Second, infrastructure should be adapted to accommodate a growing number of tourists.…”

“…An increase in the number of visitors can generate a feeling of crowding and discomfort among some visitors, notably if expecting to find peace and quiet in nature [106]. On the other hand, for the current generation of tourists visiting an overcrowded natural area may not be as problematic as it would have been a few decades ago [107], especially for city-dwellers who hardly ever ventured into natural areas prior to the pandemic.…”