Inventory and assessment of geomorphosites for geotourism development: A case study of Aït Bou Oulli valley (Central High‐Atlas, Morocco)

Abstract

Aït Bou Oulli valley is located in the heart of the Moroccan central High‐Atlas, with a height of 4,068 metres in Ighil M'goun and 3,800 metres in Rat Mountain. Mountain areas are characterised by higher geodiversity compared with other areas. The valley possesses a geoheritage that is very rich and diverse, has an exceptional landscape of high mountains and attracts tourists every year. However, the number of visitors is still restricted because of a lack of tools for promotion, valorisation and mediation of this heritage. It is with the aim to promote this rich heritage that the present work was performed. The work focuses on the inventory, selection and quantitative evaluation of the remarkable geomorphosites in order to classify them. The results reveal the presence of 81 potential sites, of which 24 are conducive to geotourism. These conducive sites included: nine fluvial landforms of which five are enviable panoramic viewpoints and four are karstic forms; four structural landforms; three glacial landforms: two gravitatives landforms; one anthropic landform; and one lake landform. Rich information provided by this study and knowledge of these new geomorphosites are important for promotion of tourism activities in the Aït Bou Oulli region and can assist planners and authorities to formulate suitable plans for sustained development of the region.

The Impact of Koja Cliff Development on Social-Cultural and Economic: Case of Community-Based Tourism, Banten, Indonesia

“…The community economy can increase because they participate in the development of Geotourism. Geo-tourism from geomorphology in Marocco shows economic interest as evidenced by the presence of hundreds of tourists (Bouzekraoui et al, 2017). Then the public perception in the Toba Caldera shows that there is a community economic growth (Ginting & Febriandy, 2018).…”

Geomorfositios de interés volcano turístico en una montaña subtropical: el Parque Nacional del Teide (Canarias, España)

“…La identificación, inventario, selección y evaluación de los geomorfositios de interés geoturístico del PNT se basa en investigaciones previas (Reynard et al, 2007(Reynard et al, , 2016Moufti et al, 2013;Bouzekraoui et al, 2017;Pérez-Umaña et al, 2019, 2020zangmo-Tefogoum et al, 2020). Este trabajo se desarrolló en tres fases: 1-identificación, inventario y selección de los geomorfositios; 2-caracterización de los lugares seleccionados y 3-evaluación de los geomorfositios teniendo en cuenta sus valores intrínsecos (científicos y adicionales o añadidos) y los de uso y gestión.…”

Where is the community in geoparks? A systematic literature review and call for attention to the societal embedding of geoparks

“…These characteristics include that heritage relates to contemporary needs and experiences of people rather than to static objects or to objects of the past (Ashworth et al, 2007;Tunbridge & Ashworth, 1996), that heritage visions are historically embedded and change over time (Harvey, 2001;Kolen & Renes, 2015), and that heritage interpretation is context-dependent (Bi et al, 2016;Crang, 2015). When presented in geotourism products, visitors could be enlightened as to the intrinsic value and importance of the physical landforms (Bouzekraoui et al, 2018;Comanescu & Nedelea, 2010). In other words, heritage cannot be decoupled from its cultural context and the communities which construct, interpret, and experience certain objects, processes, or places, also physical landscapes, as "heritage."…”

“…The scientific, expert vision that is at the basis of geoheritage valuation which "involves proper identification, characterisation, assessment and ranking of significant geoheritage sites or geosites based on their scientific, aesthetic, cultural and recreational heritage value" (Badang et al, 2017, p. 443), refers to an "objective authenticity" of these landforms. When presented in geotourism products, visitors could be enlightened as to the intrinsic value and importance of the physical landforms (Bouzekraoui et al, 2018;Comanescu & Nedelea, 2010). In contrast, the extensive discussion on the authenticity of heritage has moved beyond this objectified vision on heritage objects, pointing to the inability to find absolute criteria to define what constitutes the "real."…”