Trail preferences and visitor characteristics in Aiguestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici National Park, Spain.

摘要

Planning for recreational activities in protected areas involves an understanding of multiple and complex factors. Segmentation of the recreational supply and demand in natural areas, together with identification of the main conditioning factors of recreational use, are useful for park management. In this study, the recreational supply (trails) and demand (visitor characteristics), as well as some other features of a recreational system, were typologically studied in the Aiguestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici National Park (Lleida, Spain). Data on visitor characteristics were obtained through interviews with 796 visitors during the summer of 1996. The most visited trails, comprising a total of 37 trails, were characterized. Through the application of a multiple correspondence analysis (when dealing with demand) and cluster analysis (when dealing with both supply and demand), 4 groups of visitors and 3 groups of trails were identified. A positive relationship was observed between the difficulty of the trails and the visitors' educational level, sex, and time spent in the park; and a negative relationship between trail difficulty and the age of the visitors, conservationist perceptions, and demand for accommodation (hotels, mountain lodges, etc). Visitors who were inclined to take either the easiest or the most difficult trails (about 65% of all visitors) showed group characteristics with the greatest differences. Suggestions for managers of protected areas are discussed, including direct application of information generated by this approach in the recreational management of the Aiguestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici National Park and other natural areas.