Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences Studies (JHSSS)
Website: www.jhsss.org
ISSN: 2663-7197
109
Original Research Article
Tourists’ Perspective on Ecotourism Infrastructures in Mazandaran Province of Iran
Meysam Ramyar
1
*, Tahmineh Asadi Amiri
2
, Omekolsoum Momeni
3
, Mohammad Jafar Ghasemi
4
, & Zia Ur Rahman
Zaheer
5
1
Faculty of Build Environment and Surveying, UTM, Johor Malaysia
2
Faculty of Tourism Economic, Algarve University, Portugal
3
Faculty of Management and Accounting, University of Alameh Tabatabaei, Tehran, Iran
4
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Mazandaran, Iran
5
English Language and Literature Department, Faculty of Humanities and Literature, Baghlan University, Baghlan,
Afghanistan
Corresponding Author: Meysam Ramyar, E-mail: ramyar.meysam@gmail.com
ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT
Article History
Received: April 18, 2020
Accepted: May 21, 2020
Volume: 2
Issue: 3
This study follows a quantitative approach aiming at exploring the tourists'
perspective towards accommodation services from Mazandaran, to identify
tourists' perspective towards accessibility services from Mazandaran and to
explore tourists' perspective towards facilities from Mazandaran. A questionnaire
was mailed to 122 tourists from the state, regional and foreign tourists where they
were re required to demonstrate their ecotourism development prospects by
ranking the items as 1. Poor and 5. Strong. The findings indicated that the tourists
had a complimentary view of homestay standard and operation, but they were
not satisfied with tents sites in summer. Besides, the tourists were more optimistic
about the road quality as well as cycling, but they did not show their interest in
terms of trails and observation point's services for bird watching and skiing routes.
Furthermore, the tourists ranked indicator facilities as the least favored. They
believe that the café and restaurant, as well as parking areas, are not well
organized and showed their concerns about the bathroom, washing equipment,
waterfall, and washroom facilities.
KEYWORDS
Ecotourism Infrastructures,
Mazandaran Province,
accommodation services,
homestay standard and operation
Introduction
1
The ecotourism sector is growing worldwide as a modern face of tourism with minimal effect on nature and contributes to
biodiversity and ecosystem conservation (Mree et al., 2020). Honey (2008) reported that ecotourism is low-impact travel to
vulnerable scenic and protected areas, albeit generally on a limited scale, helping to inform tourists, provide environmental
support, encourage economic growth, albeit nurture different cultures (Ewebiyi et al., 2019).
However, in 1988 the World Trade Organization proposed the concept and principles of ecotourism, with direct links to
sustainable growth and development (Romana, 2016). It is also a responsible path to natural resources that seeks to protect
healthy local communities' climate and well-being and is known as a sustainable growth resource in the tourism field (The
World Ecotourism Society, 2013). To achieve the most beneficial facets, therefore, the construction of ecotourism
infrastructures is essential. However, tourist-friendly countries with natural scenery will raise national income per capita, and
Iran will reach the World Tourism Organization's estimated revenues if it invests in improving tourism infrastructure. Also,
Mazandaran province can play a significant role in attracting Ecotourists with its fertile, majestic, and pristine ecosystems and
numerous plant and animal species.
The specific geographical conditions, climatic diversity, and specific topography and geomorphology conditions in Iran indicate
the unique potential in the country's ecotourism region, particularly in the Mazandaran province. It is even though this
Published by Al-Kindi Center for Research and Development. Copyright (c) the author(s). This is an open access article under CC BY license
(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)