Garden visiting has become a popular leisure pursuit in recent years. Within a tourism and recreation context, scant research exists on the subject of gardens as recreational resources and the manner in which they are presented to and consumed by the public. This thesis explores the scope and nature of gardens as tourism and recreation resources in the UK. The thesis examines the conceptual foundations of the garden, in order to establish what reasons explain predisposition towards garden visiting, and why gardens provide a desirable environment in which people want to spend leisure time. The activity of garden visiting is analysed using a two-dimensional approach, which takes into account the supply of gardens open to the public and the demand for garden visits. In this respect, the supply-side relates to the perceptions of garden owners/mangers, while the demand aspect is linked with the outlook of garden visitors. Uniting these two perspectives yields an intriguing area of research, that of the visitor experience, how that experience is perceived and managed, and which elements are crucial in its formation. Understanding the visitor experience is a critical for operators of garden attractions, in line with all attractions. This thesis presents the results of two surveys, one of garden owners/managers (n=546) and one of garden visitors (n=593). Data analysis provides a source of information on the range and characteristics of gardens open to the public, approaches to managing the visitor experience and issues for owners/managers in relation to operating a garden visitor attraction as well as visitors characteristics, motivations, behaviour and perceptions of the garden experience. The data generated allows the identification of a range of themes and implications for the operators of garden attractions, in particular those issues that will influence future development.

Šio baigiamojo darbo tikslas– išanalizuoti rekreacinę sistemą ir jos plėtros galimybes Molėtų rajone. Darbe vertinama rekreacijos ir turizmo svarba bei bendrieji jų vystymo ypatumai Lietuvoje. Pateikiama Molėtų rajono charakteristika, įvertinant socialinę, verslo ir ekonominę aplinką, susisiekimo ir inžinerinę infrastruktūrą. Apžvelgiami rajono gamtiniai bei kultūriniai rekreaciniai ištekliai, įvertinamos rekreacinės zonos, turistų srautai bei rekreacinės paslaugos. Baigiamajame darbe analizuojamas saugomų teritorijų valdymas Lietuvoje ir Italijoje, apžvelgiami saugomų teritorijų valdymo ypatumai abiejose šalyse ir pateikiamas jų palyginimas. Vertinant rekreacijos plėtros galimybes Molėtų rajone, pateikiama rekreacijos ir turizmo plėtros koncepcija, įvertinamos Molėtų rajono turizmo ir rekreacijos plėtros stipriosios ir silpnosios pusės, galimybės bei grėsmės. Remiantis literatūros analize, pateikiamos baigiamojo darbo išvados ir pasiūlymai. Darbą sudaro įvadas, 4 skyriai, pasiūlymai ir išvados, literatūros sąrašas. Darbo apimtis – 83 p. teksto be priedų, 15 lentelių, 17 paveikslų, 32 literatūros šaltiniai. Atskirai pridedami darbo priedai. / Analysis of recreational system and development opportunities in Molėtai region is the object of this final project. It is summed up the importance and common peculiarities of recreation and tourism in Lithuania. There is gived the common characterization of Molėtai region with analysis of social and economic environmet and communication infrastructure in this project. There is reviewed natural and cultural recreational resources, summed up recreational zones, tourists flow and recreational facilities. In this final project there is analized management of protected areas in Lithuania and Italy and reviewed management peculiarities of protected areas in both countries and made the comparison. Conception of rereation and tourism development is given and summed up advantages and disadvantages, opportunities and threats. According to the analysis of literature, there are presented suggestions and conclusions. The structure of final project: preface, 4 chapters, suggestions and conclusions, literature. The volume of the project: 83 pages of text, 15 tables, 17 pictures, 32 sources of literature. Additions are enclosed.