A satisfação dos consumidores vem sendo alvo de pesquisas acadêmicas ao menos desde a década de 1960. Entender os fatores que determinam a satisfação do consumidor pode ser crucial para o êxito do destino ou atrativo turístico. O interesse prévio pelo tipo de elemento turístico ofertado é um fator determinante na satisfação do visitante. No entanto, no caso dos destinos e atrativos turísticos naturais, essa relação é ambígua. Parece razoável supor que, quando visita um atrativo turístico natural conservado, o indivíduo mais interessado pela natureza ficará mais satisfeito com a visita do que o indivíduo que não apresenta grande interesse pelos elementos naturais. Apesar dessa relação entre o interesse pela natureza e a satisfação parecer óbvia, existe outro efeito possível. Indivíduos com maior interesse por elementos naturais podem ficar insatisfeitos com a visita a áreas naturais, quando estas apresentarem uma presença humana muito marcante. Tal incidência do elemento humano no ambiente pode se dar tanto por meio da infraestrutura quanto da visitação em larga escala. De um lado, há um efeito positivo, oriundo da relação direta entre os interesses do indivíduo e o tipo de ambiente visitado. Contudo, de outro lado, há um efeito negativo, decorrente do potencial excesso de infraestrutura e visitação. Se o efeito negativo for forte, supõe-se que ele poderá chegar a se sobrepor ao efeito positivo, fazendo com que indivíduos mais interessados pela natureza fiquem menos satisfeitos com a visitação da área natural. Para estudar essa relação ambígua, o objetivo geral deste estudo é analisar como o interesse por questões associadas à natureza influencia a satisfação do visitante de UCs. Para viabilizar a realização deste estudo, foi selecionado o Parque Nacional do Iguaçu (PNI), um atrativo turístico natural aberto à visitação, que recebe um considerável número de visitantes, que tem relevância internacional, que oferece contato com a natureza, mas também disponibiliza infraestrutura instalada e serviços aos visitantes. Seis hipóteses foram desenvolvidas e testadas por meio de um modelo de equações estruturais, estimado a partir de dados coletados em 434 entrevistas diretas com visitantes intercontinentais do PNI. Em especial, esta pesquisa estudou os efeitos da consciência ambiental do visitante sobre sua satisfação com a experiência da visita. Dentre os principais resultados 7 encontrados, constatou-se que, quanto maior a consciência ambiental, maior é a satisfação do visitante. Verificou-se, também, que, quanto maior a motivação e o interesse por turismo com base na natureza, maior a satisfação do indivíduo. Foi observado, ainda, que atributos como demasiada infraestrutura, trilhas estreitas, lojas de lembranças, lanchonetes e elevado fluxo de visitantes em alguns períodos, não reduzem o nível de satisfação dos visitantes ambientalmente conscientes / Consumers satisfaction has been the subject of academic research since the 1960s, at least. Understanding the factors that determine consumers satisfaction can be crucial to the success of the destination or tourist attraction. The prior interest in the type of touristic element offered is a determinant factor in the visitors satisfaction. However, in the case of natural tourist destinations and attractions, this relationship is ambiguous. It seems reasonable to suppose that when one visits a preserved natural tourist attraction, the individual most interested in nature will be more satisfied with the visit than the individual who has no great interest in the natural elements. Although this relationship between interest in nature and satisfaction seems obvious, there is another possible effect. Individuals with a greater interest in natural elements may be dissatisfied with the visit to natural areas, when they present a very marked human presence. Such an impact of the human element on the environment can occur both through infrastructure and through large-scale visitation. In one hand, there is a positive effect, arising from the direct relation between the interests of the individual and the type of environment visited. However, on the other hand, there is a negative effect, due to the potential excess of infrastructure and visitation. If the negative effect is strong, it is assumed that it may overlap with the positive effect, making individuals more interested in nature less satisfied with the visitation of the natural area. In order to study this ambiguous relationship, the general objective of this study is to analyze how interest in issues associated with nature influences the visitors satisfaction with the UCs. In order to make this study feasible, The Iguaçu National Park (INP) was selected, a natural tourist attraction opened to visiting, which receives a considerable number of visitors, has international relevance and offers contact with nature, but also provides installed infrastructure and services to visitors. Six hypotheses were developed and tested using a model of structural equations, estimated from data collected in 434 direct interviews with intercontinental INP visitors. In particular, this study studied the effects of the visitors environmental awareness on their satisfaction with the visit experience. Among the main results found, the greater the environmental awareness, the greater the visitor\'s satisfaction. It was also verified that the greater the motivation and the interest in tourism based on nature, the greater the satisfaction of the individual. It was also observed that attributes such as too much infrastructure, narrow trails, souvenir shops, snack bars and high flow of visitors in some periods do not reduce the level of satisfaction of environmentally conscious visitors

A satisfação dos consumidores vem sendo alvo de pesquisas acadêmicas ao menos desde a década de 1960. Entender os fatores que determinam a satisfação do consumidor pode ser crucial para o êxito do destino ou atrativo turístico. O interesse prévio pelo tipo de elemento turístico ofertado é um fator determinante na satisfação do visitante. No entanto, no caso dos destinos e atrativos turísticos naturais, essa relação é ambígua. Parece razoável supor que, quando visita um atrativo turístico natural conservado, o indivíduo mais interessado pela natureza ficará mais satisfeito com a visita do que o indivíduo que não apresenta grande interesse pelos elementos naturais. Apesar dessa relação entre o interesse pela natureza e a satisfação parecer óbvia, existe outro efeito possível. Indivíduos com maior interesse por elementos naturais podem ficar insatisfeitos com a visita a áreas naturais, quando estas apresentarem uma presença humana muito marcante. Tal incidência do elemento humano no ambiente pode se dar tanto por meio da infraestrutura quanto da visitação em larga escala. De um lado, há um efeito positivo, oriundo da relação direta entre os interesses do indivíduo e o tipo de ambiente visitado. Contudo, de outro lado, há um efeito negativo, decorrente do potencial excesso de infraestrutura e visitação. Se o efeito negativo for forte, supõe-se que ele poderá chegar a se sobrepor ao efeito positivo, fazendo com que indivíduos mais interessados pela natureza fiquem menos satisfeitos com a visitação da área natural. Para estudar essa relação ambígua, o objetivo geral deste estudo é analisar como o interesse por questões associadas à natureza influencia a satisfação do visitante de UCs. Para viabilizar a realização deste estudo, foi selecionado o Parque Nacional do Iguaçu (PNI), um atrativo turístico natural aberto à visitação, que recebe um considerável número de visitantes, que tem relevância internacional, que oferece contato com a natureza, mas também disponibiliza infraestrutura instalada e serviços aos visitantes. Seis hipóteses foram desenvolvidas e testadas por meio de um modelo de equações estruturais, estimado a partir de dados coletados em 434 entrevistas diretas com visitantes intercontinentais do PNI. Em especial, esta pesquisa estudou os efeitos da consciência ambiental do visitante sobre sua satisfação com a experiência da visita. Dentre os principais resultados 7 encontrados, constatou-se que, quanto maior a consciência ambiental, maior é a satisfação do visitante. Verificou-se, também, que, quanto maior a motivação e o interesse por turismo com base na natureza, maior a satisfação do indivíduo. Foi observado, ainda, que atributos como demasiada infraestrutura, trilhas estreitas, lojas de lembranças, lanchonetes e elevado fluxo de visitantes em alguns períodos, não reduzem o nível de satisfação dos visitantes ambientalmente conscientes / Consumers satisfaction has been the subject of academic research since the 1960s, at least. Understanding the factors that determine consumers satisfaction can be crucial to the success of the destination or tourist attraction. The prior interest in the type of touristic element offered is a determinant factor in the visitors satisfaction. However, in the case of natural tourist destinations and attractions, this relationship is ambiguous. It seems reasonable to suppose that when one visits a preserved natural tourist attraction, the individual most interested in nature will be more satisfied with the visit than the individual who has no great interest in the natural elements. Although this relationship between interest in nature and satisfaction seems obvious, there is another possible effect. Individuals with a greater interest in natural elements may be dissatisfied with the visit to natural areas, when they present a very marked human presence. Such an impact of the human element on the environment can occur both through infrastructure and through large-scale visitation. In one hand, there is a positive effect, arising from the direct relation between the interests of the individual and the type of environment visited. However, on the other hand, there is a negative effect, due to the potential excess of infrastructure and visitation. If the negative effect is strong, it is assumed that it may overlap with the positive effect, making individuals more interested in nature less satisfied with the visitation of the natural area. In order to study this ambiguous relationship, the general objective of this study is to analyze how interest in issues associated with nature influences the visitors satisfaction with the UCs. In order to make this study feasible, The Iguaçu National Park (INP) was selected, a natural tourist attraction opened to visiting, which receives a considerable number of visitors, has international relevance and offers contact with nature, but also provides installed infrastructure and services to visitors. Six hypotheses were developed and tested using a model of structural equations, estimated from data collected in 434 direct interviews with intercontinental INP visitors. In particular, this study studied the effects of the visitors environmental awareness on their satisfaction with the visit experience. Among the main results found, the greater the environmental awareness, the greater the visitor\'s satisfaction. It was also verified that the greater the motivation and the interest in tourism based on nature, the greater the satisfaction of the individual. It was also observed that attributes such as too much infrastructure, narrow trails, souvenir shops, snack bars and high flow of visitors in some periods do not reduce the level of satisfaction of environmentally conscious visitors

This dissertation contributes to developing knowledge on the commercialization of natural resources through tourism. This is achieved by means of understanding the main avenues through which natural resources are commercialized, and analyzing the operational setting of tourism firms. The focal area is nature-based tourism– a type of tourism, taking place incomparatively unmodified natural areas, which has emerged as a powerful gravitational force, integrating an increasing variety of natural resources into the commercial domain. The point of departure is the assumption that fornature-based tourism firms, nature is simultaneously the main object of commercialization and the operational setting, where this commercialization happens. The attention here is, therefore, on the supply side, i.e. on the smalland micro firms, acting as the agents of commercialization. The empirical data come primarily from a nation-wide survey among the nature-based tourism firms in Sweden, generating the most comprehensive information about this sector to date. Additional data come from in-depth interviews and observations among the nature-based tourism firms in Sweden, as well assecondary sources (official statistics on natural resources and a survey in Norway). This is a compilation thesis, i.e. it consists of a cover essay and five individual papers. The cover essay offers a bird’s eye view on all the papers, frames them theoretically and synthesizes all the findings into a coherent contribution. Papers I and II create the foundation, necessary for understanding the processes of nature commercialization and the operational setting of naturebased tourism firms, while Papers III, IV and V provide supplementary insights into these areas of inquiry. Paper I starts by building on existing knowledge in outdoor recreation to approach nature-based tourism. Paper II focuses on the operational setting, conceptualizes and explores its dimensions. Building on this, Paper III looks at how the presence of various amenities in the operational setting can explain the localization patterns of the firms on various geographical levels. Paper IV focuses on the operational setting dimensions omitted in the previous papers, i.e. the continuous efforts of the firms to negotiate the inherent uncertainty within the setting. Finally, Paper V looks at various characteristics of nature-based tourism firms to understand the specifics of sustainability strategies. The main findings in these five papers demonstrate that the nature-basedtourism is an active integrator of a wide variety of natural resources into the commercial domain, and approaching them from the supply perspective provides an additional understanding of the sector. This approach suggests that the nature-based tourism supply could be understood not only from the perspectives of tourist activities offered, but also from the perspective of operational setting preferences (e.g., the axes of high-low specialization, and high-low dependence on specific setting features), providing a new insight into the ways of nature commercialization through tourism. The operational setting itself becomes an important resource, being simultaneously part of the supply and the environment of a tourism system, bringing together a multitude of dimensions and actors. The resources nature-based tourism depends on defy ‘commercialization-friendly’ criteria, creating a context of uncertainty and demanding higher levels of creativity and agency on behalf of the firms. Commercialized nature experiences become important not only for specialized, skill- and equipment-intensive activities, but also for rather simple and relaxed ones, on both international and domestic markets. This suggests the growing importance of commercial nature-based tourism, linked to growing sustainability challenges. The sustainable resource use within the Scandinavian nature-based tourism context, however, is deeply entrenched inunique local specifics, and the entrepreneurial characteristics are not always compatible with market-based sustainability policies, suggesting the need for more fine-tuned approaches.

Abstract The popularity of nature-based tourism has increased worldwide and peripheral areas with conservational value, like protected areas, are attractive destinations. The recreational use and construction of tourism facilities can cause environmental degradation and decrease the conservational and recreational value of areas if not well planned and managed. The aim of this thesis was to improve our knowledge of recreation and tourism induced changes in northern boreal environments. Direct and indirect impacts of recreation on vegetation and birds in protected areas were examined. Furthermore, the environmental impacts of ski resorts in terms of changes in vegetation and soil, threats from non-native species and water pollution were investigated. In protected areas, the size of the disturbed areas around campsites was found to be mainly determined by the distance between the main tourism facilities (wilderness hut and campfire-site), and the mountain biotopes were more sensitive to disturbance than forests. Recreational use had induced changes also in the bird community. The occurrence and the composition of birds were affected, and the open nesters nesting on the ground were found to be the most sensitive. The construction, revegetation and management practices of ski runs had increased the nutrient concentrations, pH and conductivity of the soil, and changed the original vegetation notably. Non-native seed mixture species, used in revegetating the ski runs, were found to be favoured by management practices (disturbance and peat addition) in an experimental study, but, eventually, were not able to be established themselves into study plots. Ski resorts’ construction and management have also affected the water quality. Concentrations of nutrients were higher in ski resort lakes in relation to reference lakes and were comparable to lakes polluted by agriculture and forestry. The results of this theses give new information on tourism and recreation induced changes and are applicable for planning and management. Nature-based tourism and recreation can cause long-term changes in terrestrial and aquatic environments, which should be considered at all levels of planning and management. For sustainable tourism development, it is essential that impacts are regularly monitored and preventative means are developed and used to minimize environmental degradation.

The diploma thesis deals with a new form of tourism - glamping in Czechia. Based on the analysis of the Czech glamping offer explains the current development and potential of glamping in Czechia. The first part of the thesis focuses on the theoretical framing of glamping tourism as part of tourism and its general characteristics and latest development. An important point of the thesis was to define the geographical distribution of glamping in the world. Based on the identified characteristics, a qualitative research of glamping in Czechia were created, the methods of which are the analysis of market supply and demand and the method of semi-structured interview and field research. The empirical part of the thesis is based on an analysis of the current state of glamping in Czechia. In this part, the locations of glamping and the preconditions for glamping destinations in Czechia were defined, which contains also a general characteristic, which also deals with the target group and the seasonality of glamping. The thesis was written during the Covid-19 pandemic, and therefore examines its effects and consequences especially on glamping tourism. The main benefits of this work include the provision of the first comprehensive view of the phenomenon of glamping in the Czech environment, which no one has...

Around the globe, sensitive nature destinations suffer from media-mediated mass tourism. Especially, the social media network Instagram is often made responsible for these events as its emphasis on visuals is claimed to foster people’s ambition to reproduce photographs of themselves in the epic sceneries they see online. Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) face a particularly big challenge in using Instagram. While they aim at attracting enough tourists to satisfy the local tourism industry’s needs, they need to apply a careful promotion to avoid attracting more tourists than the natural environments can cope with. Focusing on Sweden as case study, this thesis aims at identifying and exploring how Swedish DMOs currently promote vulnerable nature destinations on Instagram and what significance these economically driven communication agencies thereby attribute the protection of the natural resources. Theoretical implications from sustainable destination management and environmental psychology are employed to develop different communication strategies that enhance the destination’s sustainable image as well as attempt to encourage pro-environmental behavior among tourists. A mixed method design is applied which is dominated by an extensive quantitative content analysis and complemented by a more limited qualitative semiotic analysis. The findings reveal that the implementation of sustainable communication strategies is of varying importance for the six Swedish DMOs considered in this study. In general, their effort of using communication tools to enhance sustainable nature-based tourism is still very low. Future research is advised to investigate in the production as well as audience site to gain further insights in how economic interests might hinder a more sustainable branding and to examine how effective the developed communication strategies actually are in influence people’s behavioral intentions.

Sustainable changes become increasingly urgent with the climate crisis, which makes it necessary to study the human-environmental relationship. Tiveden National Park is a shared environment, and this thesis studied how sustainability was interpreted and implemented in the management of the park. The overall aim was to study how different scales of government balance ecological, economic, and social pillars of sustainability within their occupation. To precise the study, the aim specifically was to study how the balancing of ecological, economic, and social aspects is implemented in the park’s management by Region Västra Götaland, Region Örebro, Västra Götaland county administration board, Örebro county administration board, Askersund municipality, Karlsborg municipality, and Laxå municipality. After presenting a theoretical framework and interviewing ten informants at the previously mentioned organizations, the resulting analysis presented that resource scarcity and ecological threats were frequent sustainability problems at all organizations. Dialogue, positive attitudes, and long-term thinking were used by the organizations to balance sustainability conflicts of interest. The larger the spatial responsibility of each organization was, the more interdisciplinary the organization had capacity to work. The organizations interpreted sustainability similarly, but prioritized the aspects differently depending on the person’s affiliation.

Nature-based tourism offers significant socio-economic incentives to successfully replace more intrusive land uses but also causes negative environmental impacts. Currently, knowledge is needed about the effectiveness of specific management actions such as the provision of different access modes and tour experiences at minimizing these impacts while maximizing visitor satisfaction. Nature-based tourism activities were studied in the species-rich gorges of the Flinders Ranges in Outback Australia. This study developed a conceptual framework of visitor-environment relationships, constructed a regional visitor profile, assessed visitor monitoring methods to quantify usage intensity in relation to the access mode (roads vs. hiking trails), examined changes in vegetation and bird communities in relation to usage intensity and access mode, tested effects of approach behaviour among driving vs. hiking tourists on kangaroo behaviour, and designed a framework for a night-time wildlife tour. The usage intensity of gorge sections was best determined from visitor numbers stratified by their behaviour, as the access mode fundamentally changed visitor behaviour in gorges. High compared to low usage recreational tracks altered species community composition, decreased total plant cover, increased non-native species cover, increased or decreased plant diversity depending on the track distance, increased soil compaction, and decreased bird numbers and species richness. Vegetation changes had secondary aversive effects on the bird community. The magnitude and spatial extent of these community impacts were greater along roads than trails. Visitor approach towards kangaroos varied with the access mode and necessitated individual recommendations for low-impact behaviour. The optimal night-time observation tour employed night-vision devices and bat detectors and coupled visitor satisfaction with low impact on wildlife. A range of factors (e.g., weather conditions) moderated the susceptibility of the wildlife to tourism disturbance. To protect wildlife and habitat along recreational tracks in arid-lands gorges, it is recommended to (1) monitor usage intensity and the identified impact indicators within their effect zone, (2) curtail gorge usage by restricting vehicle access to sections and regulating high impact activities (e.g., wild camping), (3) base environmental education upon scientifically tested low-impact visitor behaviour, and (4) engage with tourism operators in the design of low-impact, yet satisfying tours based on scientific principles.

Tourism in tropical areas represents the fastest-growing branch of tertiary sector. The Balikpapan Bay (Eastern Kalimantan, Indonesia) is partly covered by mangroves and remains of primeval tropical forest that are extraordinary for their unique biodiversity. To avoid over-exploitation of described destination, detailed analysis of the evolving tourism and implementation of its sustainable form - ecotourism is necessary. The submitted project builds on one of the latest topics of longitudinal research running by Stanislav Lhota, PhD. in this area. Supervisor of this thesis, Radek Trnka, PhD. also joined the research in its beginning in 2005. Description and evaluation of current condition of ecotourism in Balikpapan Bay area is the main goal of the diploma thesis. Therefore, activities of organizations acting on natural tourism field, and which are connected with ecotourism, were analyzed in depth. The semi-annual field research was done in the area of Balikpapan Bay, while a combination of several qualitative techniques, especially participant and non- participant observation and semi-structured interviews as well as document analysis marginally, was used for data collection. The research brought several main findings. Concept ecotourism is perceived as an educative nature-based tourism by...

This master’s thesis determines trail suitability in the context of environmental area sensitivity, closely focusing on a proposed Bästeträsk National Park, Gotland, Sweden. The current relative low usage of the area is expected to significantly increase its tourism flow once the proposed national park is established, as the demand for nature-based tourism and recreation is growing. However, due to its pristine landscapes, myriad endemic and red-listed species, and rare geomorphological phenomena, there is a need to closely review the destination’s environmental sensitivity and potential recreational adverse impacts on the area’s ecosystem services. Consequently, the research reviews Volunteered Geographic Data within the studied area and employs Geographic Information Systems-based Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis to determine environmental trail suitability. The research identified that more than half of the studied area exhibits substantial environmental sensitivity. Additionally, it highlights that multiple used and established trails intersect considerably sensitive areas, which must be considered for future tourism planning to attain sustainable destination development. Moreover, the study furthers on the requisite to recognise nature-based activities beyond the means of low impact due to their increasing popularity and anthropogenic impacts.