Assessing ecotourism potential of hiking trails: A framework to incorporate ecological and cultural features and seasonality

a r t i c l e i n f o Recreation and wildlife observations occur often in hiking trails. In terms of recreation planning, few studies have combined ecological and cultural features to assess ecotourism potential of hiking trails. Seasonality has been also neglected in tourism research. In order to disperse tourists over the year and alleviate the negative impacts of mass tourism events, we propose an integrated framework to assess the ecotourism potential of hiking trails that encompasses species, habitats, landscape and local heritage values, and takes into consideration their seasonal differences. By doing so, this methodology aims to contribute to local sustainable development. Our findings showed that, though some attractions may not be available during certain seasons, there are others which can bring tourists to the region all year long. We discuss some of the limitations, as well as future improvements to the use of this framework in trail development. It is widely acceptable that ecotourism contributes to the preser-It constitutes a reliable tool to enhance local economies, especially in underdeveloped regions (Kirkby et al., 2011; Morrison et al., 2012). In remote and pristine areas, ecotourism has been responsible for generating revenues to environmental management purposes (Steven et al., 2013). Other potential positive impacts include: 1) providing income and employment for local communities (McNamara and 4) being a reliable tool for environmental education (Spanou, Tsegenidi, & Georgiadis, 2012). At the local scale, visitor entrance fees, donations for wildlife preservation, and visitor taxes can redistribute revenues among protected area stake-holders (Buckley, 2011). Protected areas offer ideal conditions to the development of Those activities often happen in hiking trails, where tourists can contact with unique landscapes and habitats, endemic biodiversity, and local human heritage, all key components of any ecotourism experience. However, these activities can impact protected areas These impacts need to be urgently managed in order to assure the preservation of natural and cultural values within natural areas, particularly in mountainous systems where ecotourism has been increasing (Monz et al., 2010). There, ecotourism entails mainly recreational activities such as hiking, biking, climbing, and mountaineering. This growing visitation tendency is of utmost importance to protected area managers concerned with visitor use management issues, particularly where recreation can impact summit fragile ecosystems (Monz et al., 2010). Hiking management has been subject of review by many recrea