Characteristics of Iona National Park’s visitors: Planning for ecotourism and sustainable development in Angola

• Autor(a) principal: Morais, Jorge
• Data de Publicação: 2018
• Outros Autores: Rui Alexandre, Castanho, Carlos, Pinto-Gomes, Pedro, Santos
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10174/24697; https://doi.org/doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2018.1490235
• topic: Namibe province; nature-based tourism; wildlife tourism; tourism motivation; tourism management

To assess the characteristics of Iona National Park’s visitors, we analyzed secondary data and conducted a survey by administering face-to-face interviews. We used information referring to a total of 354 visitors to assess tourists’ personal characteristics (bio-data), their motivation for visiting, and their level of satisfaction. Themajority of the visitors (60%) revealed a prevailing interest in natural and cultural attractions, and they predominantly fit a “wildlife tourist” profile. Within this profile, two possible different types of clientele were identified: (1) tourists who consider the visit as a learning opportunity but tend to exhibit low environmental and social awareness; and (2) visitors who consider the visit as a learning opportunity but also as a process where sustainability norms should be maintained. Using the study findings, we propose guidelines for the development of ecotourism in Iona National Park to advance sustainable development.