Periódico: Revista Internacional de Turismo y Empresa
Fonte: INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TOURISM, BUSINESS AND TERRITORY; Vol. 5 No. 1 (2021); 31-56
Palavras-chave:
Resumo: The use of geological heritage is being used for the development of environmentally friendly tourism modalities. This work aims to compare the situation of Latin American geoparks (Araripe, Grutas del Palacio, Mixteca Alta, Comarca Minera, Colca and Volcanes de Andagua, Kütralkura, Imbabura, as well as Río Coco) with some relevant geological sites (Cuevas from Nerja, Grand Canyon National Park, Mammoth Cave and Giant's Causeway). The modality that is approached is geotourism. Six variables were defined for the study through the Expert Method (year, extension, country, types of activities, annual tourists and income from tourist activities). The research concludes that the situation of the geoparks of Latin America, with respect to the sites of geological interest, from geotourism, is not the most satisfactory, so positive experiences in this area should be taken advantage of and adapted to the conditions of each country, in order to contribute to the conservation of the geological, geomorphological and cultural heritage. This study is part of the results of a research project, so it should be continued, presenting viable development alternatives to the Imbabura Geopark Board of Directors.
Keywords: Geoparks, Latin America, sites of geological interest, geotourism.