Analysis of the suitability for Ecotourism in Beira Baixa region using a Spatial Decision Support System based in a Geographical Information System

article

Quinta-Nova, L.C.
Ferreira, Dora

John Wiley & Sons

Quinta-Nova, L.C., Ferreira, D. (2022). Analysis of the suitability for Ecotourism in Beira Baixa region using a Spatial Decision Support System based in a Geographical Information System. Regional Science Policy & Practice.

1757-7802

10.1111/rsp3.12583

Analysis of the suitability for Ecotourism in Beira Baixa region using a Spatial Decision Support System based in a Geographical Information System

Natural resources
Tourism suitability
Sustainability
Spatial multicriteria analysis
Geographical Information Systems

2022-10-06T09:59:35Z
2022-10-06T09:59:35Z
2022

Ecotourism can contribute to the conservation of environmental values, as well as to the development of positive synergies between agents in the tourism sector, tourists, and the local population. The growing interest in tourist offers with low environmental impact, which supports the local economy, translates into a competitive advantage for low-density territories. Based on this principle, within the scope of the present study, it is intended to evaluate the potential of the existing natural and rural features in the Beira Baixa region, located on the Center interior of Portugal, that can anchor the creation of sustainable tourism products. Despite the undeniable interest in carrying out studies to determine an aggregate suitability index for the development of ecotourism using Spatial Multi-criteria Decision Analysis, there are still no studies carried out in Portugal. The identification of areas suitable for the development of ecotourism, and their constraints, was carried out based on the integration of nine criteria using the Analytic Hierarchy Process in a Geographical Information System environment. The results obtained reveal that the region has high suitability for the practice of ecotourism activities, given the important natural heritage. This study was innovative to show the ecotourism potential based on a diversity of criteria as an aid to public administration agents with functions in planning, territorial management, and management of support mechanisms for the tourist sector. The use of the landscape diversity criteria, which had not yet been tested in previous studies, proved to be important in determining the ecotourism potential of the region, together with the landscape value based in the importance of the Montado agrosystem, that supports a variety of sustainable tourist activities. The information produced in the study may be useful for the design of new policies for valuing natural resources through tourism.
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