- Ensure viable, long-term economic operations, providing socioeconomic benefits to all stakeholders that are fairly distributed, including stable employment and income-earning opportunities and social services to host communities, and contributing to poverty alleviation.
Achieving sustainable tourism is a continuous process and it requires the constant monitoring of impacts, introducing the necessary preventive and/or corrective measures whenever necessary. Sustainable tourism should also maintain a high level of tourist satisfaction and ensure a meaningful experience to the tourists, raising their awareness about sustainability issues and promoting sustainable tourism practices amongst them.” (2005, p.11).
The above-mentioned definition is much emphasis on local community and environmental, social and economic impacts of tourism and their management. Sustainable tourism as an emerging paradigm seems to enhance the existing conceptual frameworks on tourism planning and development by making the residents its focal point. Indeed, both direct and indirect support of community residents’ participation is the foundation of the sustainability paradigm (Butcher 1997; Hunter 1997; Jamieson & Jamal, 1997).
In recent years, changing attitudes toward the nature of the tourist experience together with the growing realization that tourism takes place in fragile areas was the notion that it consumes environmental resources (Mason, 2003). Increasingly, groups of tourists became more concerned and feel more responsibility about the impacts of their activities were having on the environment, this led to the growth of what some consider as more environment-friendly forms of tourism, such as ecotourism (Wearing & Neil, 1999 cited in Mason, 2003).
Protected areas defined by IUCN as: “An area of land and/or sea especially dedicated to the protection and maintenance of biological diversity, and of natural and associated cultural resources, and managed through legal or other effective means” (IUCN, 1994).
IUCN nominates a six category system of protected areas (IUCN, 1994). Table 2.3 shows that some kinds of tourism activities are eligible in every category of protected areas. It also shows that although biodiversity protection is a critically important function of many protected areas, it is not the only purpose and is often not the primary purpose of a protected area (Eagles, McCool & Haynes, 2002, p.11). Protected areas are to conserve nature and at the same time prepare humans opportunities for recreation, inspiration, education and understanding (Newsome, Moor & Dowling, 2002).
Table 2.3 IUCN management categories of protected areas
Category Description
I Strict Nature Reserve/Wilderness Area: Protected area managed mainly for science or wilderness protection
Ia Strict Nature Reserve: Protected area managed mainly for science.
Ib Wilderness Area: Protected area managed mainly for wilderness protection.
II National Park: Protected area managed mainly for ecosystem protection and recreation.
III Natural Monument: Protected area managed mainly for conservation of specific natural features.
IV Habitat/Species Management Area: Protected area managed mainly for conservation through V Protected Landscape/Seascape: Protected area managed mainly for landscape/seascape
conservation and recreation.
VI Managed Resource Protected Area: Protected area managed mainly for the sustainable use of natural ecosystems.
Source: IUCN, 1994
After the industrial revolution, the livelihood pattern shifted from rural to urban and man was more distanced from the nature. The process of urbanization lead to removing people from nature and one strategy for being close to nature is tourism (Holden, 2000). That is why natural destinations and activities associated with natural environment has been increasingly popular (Tourism Canada, 1995).
2.4.1 Nature-based tourism
Nature-based tourism growing by an estimated 10 to 30 percent per annum is one of the fastest growing sectors in the tourism industry (Mckercher, 1998). It takes place in natural areas. Many visitors including those who are environmentally sensitive and a wide range of other type of tourists visit these areas (Arnegger, Woltering & Job, 2010; Ryan, Hughes &
Chirgwin, 2000; Wheeller, 2006).
Nature-based tourism is defined as any non-consumptive or consumptive tourist activity (Shafer & Choi, 2003) that takes place in natural settings, tourism that based on the specific aspects and elements of the natural environment and tourism that is developed in order to conserve and sustain natural areas (Hall & Boyd, 2005). In its broadest sense, nature-based tourism involves experiencing natural places, typically through outdoor activities (Tourism New South Wales, 2006, p. 1).
According to Goodwin “Nature, or nature-based, tourism encompasses all forms of tourism - mass tourism, adventure tourism, low-impact tourism, ecotourism - which use natural resources in a wild or undeveloped form- including species, habitat, landscape, scenery and salt and fresh-water features” (1996, p.287). Hall and Weiler (1992, p.143) defined nature-based tourism as “a broad spectrum of touristic activities, often commercialized and involving an interaction with the natural environment away from the participant’s home range.”
Nature-based tourism encompasses a broad scope including adventure tourism, ecotourism, alternative tourism, educational tourism, sustainable tourism, responsible tourism and many other forms of non-mass tourism (McKercher, 1998, p. 1). Therefore, Nature-based tourists cannot be sorted in one group because their activities and characteristics may overlap with other forms of tourism (Weaver, Faulkner, & Lawton, 1998). Table 2.4 shows different forms of nature-based tourism.
Table 2.4 Scope of nature-based tourism
Scope of nature-based tourism
Nature-oriented tourism Environment-friendly tourism Environmental pilgrimage Ethical tourism
Soft tourism Agro tourism Agricultural tourism Alternative tourism Sustainable tourism
Nature travel Wildlife tourism Ecotourism Nature tourism
Special interest tourism Green tourism
Farm tourism Adventure tourism Educational tourism Source: own compilation
Regardless of the nature-based tourist activity practiced, some infrastructure and superstructure is required to complement or enhance the natural attraction for nature-based tourism such as accommodation, transportation, water supply and specific visitor facilities (Pirskin, 2001). Although, nature-based tourism is reliant on the natural attractions of an area (Burr, Zeitlin, Chase, Ramaswamy, Green & Dougherty, 2010), the presence of these facilities can improve visitors’ experience and contribute to maintenance of environmental quality (Pearce, 1989). Furthermore, lack of facilities and services in natural destinations may discourage people from revisiting a site (Pirskin, 2001, p. 642).
2.4.2 Nature-based tourism typology
Generally, it is the quality of a natural area’s living or biotic element (the flora and fauna or wildlife) that plays a primary role in attracting tourists to specific destinations (Newsome et al., 2002, p. 14). The visitors have different motives and are interested in doing a variety of activities. Many activities are placed under the nature-based tourism activities including:
biking, boating, canoeing, kayaking, fishing, hiking, horseback riding, hunting, mountain biking, sightseeing, auto tours, snowmobiling, skiing, wildlife/bird watching, off-road driving, walking, sledding, water skiing, sailing and scuba diving, (Arnegger et al., 2010; Burr et al., 2010; Ching Yang, 2006; Goodwin, 1996; Hall & Boyd, 2005; Hall & Weiler, 1992; Holden,
2000; McKercher, 1998; Ryan et al., 2000; Weaver et al., 1998). Table 2.5 illustrates the categorization of nature-based tourism activities.
According to Wearing and Neil (2009), nature-based tourism includes activities for which the natural setting is the basis, those that are reliant on nature and those that are enhanced by nature. Although, nature-based tourism tends towards small-scale tourism, embraces the sustainable approach and fosters ‘responsible tourism’, but it can become mass tourism in many natural areas (Newsome et al., 2002, p.13).
Table 2.5 Nature-based tourism activities
Activities examples
Adventure Hiking, orienteering, backpacking, mountain climbing, rock climbing, caving, horseback riding, off-road driving, rafting
Water based Rafting, Boating, Sailing, Canoeing, Kayaking, Rowing, Floating, Sail board, Wind surfing, Water skiing, Snorkeling, Scuba diving, Swimming, Hard and consumptive Hunting (big and small game, birds), Fishing
Fitness Biking, Walking, jogging
Viewing Wildlife viewing, Bird watching, Fish viewing, Sightseeing Snow and ice related Skiing, Snowboarding, Snowmobiling,
Outdoor Camping, Picnicking
Source: own compilation