Ecotourism in Natural Parks: An Assured Sustainable Success? Tourist Behavior, Attractiveness and Sustainable Development Issues in Two Italian Parks

ABSTRACT

Ecotourism is assumed to have a great potential in fostering environmental sustainability and economic development in natural parks. However, since some experiences seem to demonstrate the opposite, several researchers are cautious about recognizing the potential and benefits of ecotourism. The paper aims at giving an explanation to the existence of these two conflicting views, by showing that an overestimation of the economic and environmental sustainability of ecotourism is often based either on a misunderstanding of tourist motivations and behavior or on a poor assessment of the parks' tourism attractiveness. By applying a product-based and place-specific approach to the assessment of ecotourism demand in two Italian Natural Parks, the paper aims at underlining how the study of ecotourists' behavior—and not intentions—and destination attractiveness leads to a safer and more realistic estimation and evaluation. Therefore, the findings discussed in the paper should prevent Park Managers to make precipitate decisions about the future development plan of a natural area. The findings highlight that the role of ecotourism in contributing to the local economy and to the environmental sustainability is not to be taken for granted, but assessed according to the specific destination and tourism demand.