Motivational and Behavioral Profiling of Visitors to Forest-based Recreational Destinations in Sri Lanka

The tourism industry plays a key role in regional and destination development. As negative environmental and socio-cultural impacts of mass tourism become more common, the appeal of alternative forms of tourism, especially ecotourism, continues to increase. With rising demand, ecotourism operators are facing the task of meeting expectations of diverse consumers of ecotourism products. Accordingly, the need to define and distinguish ecotourists from other types of tourists has become important. The importance of using a behavioral approach to distinguish ecotourists from other types of tourists is emphasized by tourism scholars. This study developed distinct motivational and behavioral profiles of visitors to forest-based ecotourism sites in Sri Lanka. Results identified four different types of tourists based on their behavioral and motivational characteristics: ecotourists, picnickers, egoistic tourists, and adventure tourists. Broad implications of visitor profiling are also discussed. This approach can help ecotourism operators to better tailor marketing strategies and increase visitor satisfaction.     

The Natural State

ABSTRACT

Australian nature-based tourism and ecotourism have become popular forms of recreational activity. Tasmania attracts twice the Australian national average number of nature-based tourists and ecotourists (thirty per cent). The growth of this tourism sector has prompted measures to ensure that experiences are of high quality, and that environmental impacts are adequately managed. ISO 14000 is an environmental management and certification system often utilised as an environmental management system standard within various industries, but has not been widely applied to the Australian tourism industry. The Nature and Ecotourism Accreditation Program (NEAP) represents the most significant accreditation measure within Australia at present. This paper assesses the relevance of NEAP in the Tasmanian nature-based tourism and ecotourism industry through in-depth interviews with a key informant group and a comparative analysis of interview data. The paper introduces nature-based tourism and ecotourism definitions and discusses the growing relevance of ecotourism accreditation. The paper argues that NEAP is relevant to the Tasmanian nature-based tourism and ecotourism industry, where the quality of the natural environment forms the central focus for such experiences. Furthermore, the paper argues that NEAP can assist in supporting the State's nature-based tourism and ecotourism industry through means such as branding and promotion. However, problems exist in relation to financial issues between NEAP and operators, and the perceived overlap of NEAP with the widely implemented Tourism Council Tasmania Accreditation Program. Thus, financial issues need to be addressed by the Ecotourism Association of Australia in association with Australian Commonwealth Government subsidisation. The degree of overlap between the two programs can be effectively addressed through industry cooperation. The paper also suggests that stronger branding and promotion of NEAP can be achieved through increased industry involvement by Tourism Tasmania.     

Magnitude of ecotourism in Costa Rica and Kenya

An examination of ecotourism patterns within Costa Rica and Kenya reveals differential magnitudes across an array of relevant criteria. If measured in terms of specialized accommodations, visits by specialist ecotourists, direct social and economic impact, activity space, or government investment, ecotourism is a relatively minor activity. More congruent with the popular image of these two countries as high profile ecotourism destinations are total tourist activity time, ecotourism as a visitor motivation, and indirect revenue generation, all of which are substantial or major. It is argued that this touristic form of development and practice exists in a symbiotic relationship with mass tourism, and the more intensive types should be considered as a type of the latter.     

Ecotourism and the Conservation Ethic: Recruiting the Uninitiated or Preaching to the Converted?

Ecotourism is being promoted as a sustainable alternative to mass tourism, although critics suggest that it may be just as damaging because it encourages increased use of natural areas. One of ecotourism's claimed benefits is the promotion of pro-environment attitudes and behaviours. However, this may not occur if ecotourists are already 'converted' to the pro-environment cause. To test this claim, a study was undertaken of ecotourists visiting Lamington National Park in southeast Queensland. A pre-/post-visit questionnaire survey was conducted on-site, as well as a follow-up mail-out survey four months later. This paper presents results of that study in terms of four ecotourist groups. Results indicate that ecotourism can increase environmental knowledge and influence conservation views and behaviours. Of the four groups, coach day tour visitors were the least pro-environment initially but had relatively strong ecotourist motivations. They achieved the highest gains in knowledge and in the short term were influenced the most by the visit. In the long term, respondents who were the most pro-environment and who had learnt most during their visit were influenced the most. Therefore, for immediate effects of the experience on the uninitiated to endure, motivations need to be stimulated to encourage further involvement in and learning about nature. The question remains as to whether encouraging such involvement will have net benefits for the environment.     

基于行为与态度的生态旅游市场构成研究--以太白山国家森林公园为例

生态旅游者作为生态旅游活动的主体，其行为特征的研究至关重要。本文以太白山森林公园为例，对旅游者行为特征进行了调查研究，将其划分为一般生态旅游者和比较严格的生态旅游者，并对二者特征进行了对比研究，提出了与周边行政区联合开发等策略。     

Ecotourists' Perception of Ecotourism Experience in Lower Kinabatangan,Sabah, Malaysia

This paper presents the empirical findings of an exploratory qualitative study which looks at ecotourists' perceptions of ecotourism experiences in Sabah, Malaysia in order to identify the expressive dimensions that describe the quality of their experience. In-depth interviews were conducted with European ecotourists who stayed at two ecolodges in Sukau. Positive and negative experiences were identified from an analysis of the expressive dimensions of their service experience. The findings show that the ecotourists' experience is multidimensional. Respondents place particular emphasis on the ecotourism activities in which they physically engage at the sites and the natural environment in which they are located; their interaction with the site service staff; socialisation with other ecotourists, and the information acquired during the visit. The six expressive dimensions describing the positive experience are consistent with previous research. The study explores understanding of ecotourists' experience in the ecotourism environment – an under-researched area. The paper points out that the evaluation of quality of experience appears to involve both attributes – functional elements that are provided by the service suppliers and affective/emotional elements that are brought about by the ecotourists themselves.     

国内外生态旅游者行为与态度特征的比较研究——以北京市百花山自然保护区为例

国外很早就开始对生态旅游者的研究予以关注,而国内相关的实证研究较缺乏.伴随生态旅游在我国的日益普及,介绍国外相关研究结论,对比国内外生态旅游者的行为与态度特征差异,将有助于探索适合我国生态旅游发展的道路与模式.以北京市百花山自然保护区为例,在明确区分生态旅游者和一般游客的基础上,从人口统计、动机、环境态度等方面探讨了中外生态旅游者的特征差异,并针对性地提出若干管理建议.     

国内外观鸟旅游研究综述

观鸟旅游是生态旅游最重要的表现形式.观鸟旅游的经济、社会、环境效益得到了学术界的关注,尤其是美国已将其列入全国休闲产业调查的对象.本文通过介绍观鸟旅游概念、涉及的学科理论、研究方法和成功的案例,以及与环境保护关系,解析中国观鸟旅游者行为研究现状,为中国观鸟旅游相关利益者例如旅游管理部门、当地社区、旅行社和旅游者提供有益的建议.     

Profiling Taiwanese Ecotourists Using a Self-definition Approach

Numerous studies have profiled ecotourists but these have been done mainly in the context of North American ecotourists. This study provides one of the few examinations of the rapidly developing Asian ecotourism market in the context of domestic visitation to Taiwan's Taroko National Park. The study uses an innovative self-defined approach to defining an ecotourist. Findings include demographic results, benefits sought, travel motivation, and activities. Comparisons between Taiwanese and North American ecotourists are also made.     

Ecotourism in Bhutan: Extending its Benefits to Rural Communities

This paper analyzes the present state of tourism in Bhutan and considers the prospects for the development of ecotourism. Empirical surveys of tour operators and foreign tourists indicate that visitors interested in the natural beauty of the Himalayan kingdom stay longer than those who come to experience its culture. By attracting younger tourists, ecotourism could contribute to the goals of Gross National Happiness. The majority of tourists and tour operators are in favor of ecotourism activities that might benefit local rural communities. The prerequisite for a substantial promotion of ecotourism would be changes in the Bhutanese tourism policy to encourage the diversification of tourism products.     

Identifying and mapping forest-based ecotourism areas in West Virginia – Incorporating visitors' preferences

This study identifies and maps forest-based ecotourism areas in West Virginia by incorporating visitors' preferences. Relative weights for ecotourism destination criteria were obtained using the Analytic Hierarchy Process based on a survey of 777 participants. The study classified the state into five levels of naturalness with areas under Class I being the least natural and Class V being the most natural. The presence of wildlife was found to be the most important criterion and slope was found to be the least. Results also showed significant variations in visitors' preferences. Areas under Class IV and Class V in both weighted and unweighted ecotourism maps covered more than half of the state's area, suggesting high prospects for promoting forest-based ecotourism in the state. The results further showed that each class changed in size when visitors' preferences were applied. The ecotourism maps created provide useful insights for visitors, destination managers, and decision makers.     

Characteristics and Perceptions of Coastal and Wildflower Nature-based Tourists in the Central Coast Region of Western Australia

Profiles of independent nature-based tourists were assessed in the Central Coast Region of Western Australia. The research was required to determine seasonal resource use as well as to identify any potential groupings within a population of nature-based tourists. The research was based on information collected from 702 self-administered visitor surveys. Data were statistically analysed using non-parametric tests. Results confirm that nature-based tourists are not a homogeneous group and that group characteristics vary seasonally. Visitors in the summer were casual coastal nature tourists. Their activities were spatially concentrated along the coast and included various forms of recreation. Visitors in the spring were wildflower tourists who travelled predominantly in hinterland areas and their activities focused more on nature appreciation. Coastal tourists were younger, travelled in larger groups and stayed longer at the destination. Coastal tourists are likely to require more facilities than wildflower tourists. Assessment of attitudes towards value statements regarding tourism and the environment highlighted the diversity of opinions among visitor groups. Visitors also demonstrated variable understanding of tourism types and ecotourism was the least understood type. The research highlights difficulties in separating visitors into general nature-based tourists and ecotourists.     

Planning for Sustainable Ecotourism: The Case for Research Ecotourism in Developing Country Destinations

Research ecotourism is a relatively new component of activities within the ecotourism industry, providing research opportunities for visitors focusing on aspects of the natural environment which are principally located in developing countries. This paper is directed towards identifying the nature and causes of socio-cultural impacts of this strand of ecotourism using a case study from Indonesia. The positive nature of socio-cultural impacts perceived by host communities alongside the irregular nature of economic benefits to host communities is analogous with the altruistic surplus theory of individual recognition of communal benefits. Certain characteristics of research ecotourists are identified as contributing towards host reactions towards visitors which reinforce the contention that this is a desirable form of ecotourism in similar locations.     

Ecosystem Tourism: A Resource-based Philosophy for Ecotourism

Ecotourism has become a popular form of tourism development and marketing in the past ten years, often harnessing the growth in public concern over the wise use of natural resources. In most cases, however, impacts on the ecosystems that are the resource base for ecotourism products are either externalised or their consequences incorporated into the natural evolution of tourism products. This paper is an attempt to stimulate debate on the role that more holistic resource management should play in ecotourism developments. We contend that this can only be achieved through an understanding of ecological science. Credible ecotourism must be firmly based in scientific ecological principles that define ecosystem integrity, especially the resilience of ecosystem processes to disturbance. Such tolerance should be the fundamental measurement against which ecotourism products are monitored.We introduce the term 'ecosystem tourism' to summarise this agenda to define truly sustainable ecotourism development.     

Toward an ecological civilization: Mass comprehensive ecotourism indications among domestic visitors to a Chinese wetland protected area

Large-scale park-visitor symbiosis remains an aspiration despite the need for new models to address the challenges of managing contemporary protected area systems. A survey of 1050 visitors to the Red Beach National Scenic Corridor in Northeast China, however, indicates a latent potential, with 36.0% qualifying as “enthused ecotourists” and 32.4% as “ecotourists” based on claimed adherence to basic ecotourism characteristics. Another 17.2% are “hands-on greens” also amenable to participation in on-site park enhancement activities but neutral about nature learning. “Ambivalents” account for the remaining 14.4% of the sample. High overall proclivity to participate, report misbehavior, and behave in a more environmentally responsible manner as a result of their Red Beach visit constitutes a basis for mass comprehensive ecotourism that can achieve park-visitor symbiosis and contribute significantly to the creation of an ecological civilization, as long as attendant strategies incorporate distinctive Chinese tendencies in ecotourism and outdoor recreation.     

Ecotourism and Certification: Confronting the Principles and Pragmatics of Socially Responsible Tourism

Many ecotourism proponents advocate certification as a means to distinguish legitimate ecotourism from counterfeit ‘greenwashed’ products. This paper discusses efforts by certification advocates operating in global arenas to generate standards for measuring compliance with one dimension of widely accepted definitions of ecotourism, the stipulation that it should provide benefits to local communities. The paper then presents an ethnographic case study from Belize that reveals disagreements among ecotourism stakeholders in Belize and between them and international experts about the meaning of several key terms: who should count as ‘local’, what should count as ‘participation’ by locals, and what constitutes a ‘benefit’ to local communities. The author argues that divergent perspectives on these issues must be recognised and accommodated in the process of harmonising or standardising certification criteria for ecotourism; failure to do that could imperil both the principled and pragmatic rationales behind the requirement that ecotourism provide benefits to local communities.     

The Socially Aware Baby Boomer: Gaining a Lifestyle-Based Understanding of the New Wave of Ecotourists

As the Baby Boomers approach retirement, tourism, in general, is expected to increase among members of this generation. This increase in travel is expected to be accompanied by a surge of interest in ecotourism—resulting in a new wave of ecotourists, over the next quarter century. This four-nation analysis of the post-war Baby Boom generation in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the United States (the CANZUS countries) argues that Baby Boomers should be segmented by their lifestyle characteristics, in order to isolate the best prospects for ecotourism. Data are presented to show that the prime-prospect ecotourist among Baby Boomers is in the Socially Aware lifestyle group, in Australia, and its counterparts in the other CANZUS populations—Autonomous Rebels in Canada, Educated Liberals in New Zealand, and Actualisers in the United States. Additional data on the travel motives and value priorities of Socially Aware Baby Boomers give a fuller picture of this group. Members of the Baby Boom generation are currently experiencing middle age; the psychological implications of this life stage for ecotourism activity are also given. Strategy pointers are offered for the ecotourism manager, given the growing importance of the Socially Aware Baby Boomer as an ecotourist.     

国外生态旅游研究进展

作为可持续旅游的实现形式，生态旅游一经提出，就迅速引起学术界的极大关注，本文试图对国外生态旅游研究工作进行分析，着重析述生态旅游的兴起、概念与内涵、生态旅游经济价值评估、生态旅游规划以及开发与管理几个方面。     

黄山风景区生态旅游实践研究

生态旅游对于优化产业结构、促进区域可持续发展、推动生态文明建设具有重要意义。本文选取山地型生态旅游地黄山风景区为案例开展实践研究,主要研究内容包括：（1）首先摸清了黄山风景区野生动植物、古树名木、地貌、气候、水体等丰富的生态旅游资源;（2）梳理了黄山风景区在生态旅游者、资源、企业与环境等方面采取的促进生态旅游发展的措施,包括确定合理的景区承载量、封闭轮休精华景点、规范保护古树名木、有效防控松材线虫灾害、严防森林火灾、生态旅游企业改革和科学治理“三废”等;（3）论述了黄山风景区生态旅游发展所取得的经济、社会和生态效益,其效益具有时间和空间的溢出性,对国内外旅游目的地可持续发展起到推动作用。黄山风景区是生态旅游发展的范例地,其区域发展、法规标准和多主体参与等一系列生态旅游保护与利用实践为国内外风景名胜区发展生态旅游提供了宝贵经验。