Solutions for the development of ecotourism in Ramyan city, Golestan province

Academic Thesis for Master's Degree

Field: Geography, Orientation: Tourism Planning

In this research, the ecotourism attractions in Ramian city of Golestan province and providing solutions for the development of ecotourism in this city have been investigated. In order to present the solutions, two SWAT techniques and hierarchical analysis were used. First, we used hierarchical analysis to prioritize the ecotourism points in this city, and then, using the SWAT technique, we presented the solutions by expressing the weaknesses and strengths, opportunities and threats from three economic, ecological and institutional aspects.

Ramiyan city of Golestan province is located in the southwest of the province and from the north to the city of Gonbad Kavos, from the south to Semnan province is connected to Aliabad Katul city from the west and Azadshahr city from the east. This city has many eco-tourism attractions such as forest, lake, waterfalls and springs and flora and fauna.

Based on the results obtained from hierarchical analysis (AHP), security criteria with a weight of 0.290, easy access with a weight of 0.269, facilities with a weight of 0.226 and The uniqueness of the attraction with a weight of 0.215 has the first to fourth positions, respectively. The final result of the prioritization of ecotourism attractions in Ramyan city is as follows: Bagh Tashte, Gol Ramyan, Deland Jungle Park, Shirabad waterfalls, Miran castle, springs and waterfalls of Said Kalateh and Olang. The ranking of attractions with the hierarchical analysis model showed that only the presence of the natural features of the area is the reason for choosing people for It is not a region because factors such as security, access and facilities also have a great impact on attracting tourists.

With the help of the Swat model, the strengths and weaknesses of the development of tourism and ecotourism in Ramian city are, respectively, the increasing motivation of the local people to stay and the lack of education and sufficient awareness of the benefits of tourism. Based on the results obtained from the Swat model, the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats from three economic, ecological and institutional aspects and competitive strategies, diversity strategies, revision strategies and diversity strategies were presented.

Key words: Ecotourism, Ramian, SWOT, AHP

Introduction

One of the most important activities of contemporary human beings that has caused fundamental changes in political, economic, cultural issues and people's way of life is tourism. Also, tourism creates global understanding and peace, as well as enhancing culture and earning money. (Papli Yazdi, 1390: 34).

In the current industrial societies where people live in big cities with all kinds of problems and problems, noise and climate pollution and so on. . . The best way to get rid of physical and mental fatigue and to realize the greatness of creation and to understand aesthetic concepts is tourism.  

The importance of tourism in peace and international and cultural understanding has caused the United Nations General Assembly to declare September 29 (October 5) every year as World Tourism Day. According to the report of the World Ecotourism Association (TIES), the number of nature tourists is increasing by 10% every year, while according to WTO statistics, 60% of the world's tourists are nature tourists, and according to the World Tourism Organization, the growth of nature tourism in the world It is so urgent that this century was called the century of ecotourism. (Publication No. 42 of the World Ecotourism Organization)

In this situation, placing ecotourism as the focus of Iran's tourism will have a logical justification because in the year 2000, the World Organization of UNESCO introduced Iran as the 7th place of the world's biological reserves, which undoubtedly in this evaluation has diverse natural landscapes such as coastal, mountainous, forest, desert and desert with the appearance of four seasons and Biodiversity and topography (from 27 meters below sea level to 5671 meters above sea level) have not been without influence.

The present research deals with providing solutions for the development of ecotourism in Ramyan city and prioritizing the main ecotourism attractions of the region, and for this purpose SWOT and AHP techniques have been used. It is a change and a transformation, these changes that started with the industrial revolution are still going on. The production of automobiles, the creation and expansion of railways, the flight facilities of passenger planes, and the revision of work laws and the increase of leisure time have all joined hands to form a nascent industry called tourism.

However, tourism will not be possible and achievable without planning due to its importance and the effects that it can have on the spatial organizations of cities and villages in economic, social, cultural, political and environmental terms. In general, planning is able to play an important and key role in solving the contradictions that tourism development can create. Tourism development can have positive economic, social, cultural and even environmental effects and benefits in a tourist society on the one hand, and on the other hand it can create negative effects in all dimensions, especially in the environmental dimension, creating a balance in this field should be such that the positive effects are more than the negative effects. Undoubtedly, it will not lead to sustainable development and we will face many problems and dilemmas. The potential of tourism depends above all on the geographical assets, the quality of its natural landscapes and historical monuments, and its native culture. Therefore, valuing these factors and turning them into marketable elements, promoting policy, preserving and caring for traditions, customs, landscapes, the environment of the region, its attractiveness and residence, and making Ramyan a tourism product. has done:

"Ecotourism is responsible travel to natural areas that protects the environment and provides a better life and more prosperity for the local people." (Drum and Moore, 2017: 4)

As the awareness and experience of ecotourism activities increases, the need to provide more comprehensive and detailed definitions is felt. In 1999, Martha Haney [1] gave an excellent definition. and provided a detailed description of ecotourism: "Ecotourism is usually a trip to protected areas[2] that are pristine and vulnerable, and the impact of this trip on the environment is small, it is done on a small scale, it helps to increase the level of awareness among tourists, it provides capital to preserve the environment, it directly helps the economic development and political authority of local communities, and it respects different cultures and human rights." (Ibid.:5)

1-2. and the need to conduct research

Today, the tourism industry, especially domestic tourism, has a special place in the economy of countries and plays an active and effective role in improving the economic, social and cultural structure of countries, especially in developing countries. Therefore, these countries have been able to bring important issues such as foreign exchange earnings, employment growth, exchange and cultural interaction, creating a market for the consumption of products and services, and a conscious and active presence in the field of global communications and information for the progress and development of their country. Avarand (Commercial Surveys, 2013: 27).

Tourism requires double and more investigations compared to single daily trips and ordinary excursions in nature. Therefore, unlike mass tourism, whose resources are specific and individual components, ecotourism or nature-based tourism needs to consider various components such as people's desires in choosing a tour, comfort, awareness, learning and escaping to nature and away from daily life. These components are actually the constituents of the sustainable tourism industry. Therefore, it can be seen that ecotourism is actually a sub-component of the sustainable tourism industry (Alaeddinoglu and Can, ) and tourism in touristic areas needs to determine the tourism capacity and tourist power of each region in order to reduce the effects of instability resulting from the tourism industry (Bennett et al., ).

Ramyan Negin city of Golestan province is located in the southwest of the province and from the north to Gonbad Kavus city, from the south to the province of Ali Semnan, from the west to the city of Ali Semnan. Katul and it is connected to Azadshahr city from the east. (Ramyan governorate website, 2013) This city with an area of ??75,949 square kilometers has two parts, central and Fendersk, four villages of Qala Miran, Deland, North Fendersk and South Fendersk - three cities of Ramyan, Deland, Khan Bebin - 51 coded villages and 13 uncoded settlements. 1385 has a population of over 82 thousand people, of which more than 30 thousand people live in urban areas and about 52 thousand people live in rural areas. The climate of the city is moderate and due to its proximity to the forest and mountains, it has a pleasant summer weather. In terms of precipitation, the Kostani part has cold and snowy winters and mild summers. .