Trail preferences and visitor characteristics in Aiguistortes i Estany National Park, Spail

Abstract

Planning for recreation activities in natural areas involves an understanding of multiple and complex factors. Segmentation of the recreation supply and demand of natural areas, together with identification of the main conditioning factors of the recreational use, are useful for park management. In this study, the recreational supply (trails) and demand (visitors’ characteristics) as well as some other features of a recreational system were typologically studied in the Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici National Park (Lleida-Spain). Through the application of a Multiple Correspondence Analysis (when dealing with the demand) and Cluster Analysis (when dealing with both supply and demand), four groups of visitors and three groups of trails were identified. A positive relationship was observed between the difficulty of the trails and the visitors’ educational level, masculine gender and time spent in the park, and a negative relationship between trail difficulty and age of the visitors, conservationist perception, and demand of accommodation facilities (hotels, mountain lodges, etc.). Visitors that inclined to take either the easiest or the most difficult trails (about 65% of all the visitors) showed group characteristics with greatest differences. Suggestions for managers of protected areas are discussed, including direct application of information generated by this approach in the recreation management of this National Park and other natural areas.