 Abstract

Ecotourism has been turning out as a great sector for countries who want
to better conserve and preserve their natural areas and cultural heritage
and in turn also helps in eliminating the problem of scarcity of employment
as it generates employment opportunities as well as helps in protection of
the environment and community development . The main study of this
research paper was comparative analysis of ecotourism in different
countries and comparing it with respect to India . We Started it with a brief
introduction and studied the growth of ecotourism in ASEAN countries and
compared the position of India , growth of ecotourism and favourite
destinations of eco-tourists by comparing the data between the ASEAN
countries from 2011 to 2022 showing the top favoured destinations by the
ecotourists . We also compared the situation of ecotourism in South
America and how it's been emerging . We focused on keyword analysis and
journal analysis to better interpret the research project. With the help of
the Google scholar and sci- hub we were able to extract secondary data and
complete our research project. We also tabulated the contribution of
countries in terms of the publication of the articles related to ecotourism
and represented it in the data form to make it more understandable and
simpler.

चरन्ति वसु धां कृत्स्नां वावदूका बहुशरु

् ताः।

-Those who walk on what has come forth, are indeed great and get what
they deserve.

[Mahabharat, Ashwamedh Parva 7-23]

INTRODUCTION:

Tourism is travelling from one place to another for enjoyment and fun or for
work and the commercial affair of organizing and helping such travel. Tourism
can be local, domestic or international. When Tourism focuses on social,
economic and environmental affects and recognizes the wants of the tourists,
the firm, the environment and the local community, it is considered as
Sustainable Tourism. Tourism is meant for relaxation, pleasure, experience and
improved health. There are different reasons for visiting different places and
these reasons have led to classify tourism into several types. They are cultural
tourism, medical tourism, adventure tourism, wildlife tourism, pilgrimage
tourism, ecotourism etc.

ILO gives the 3 pillars of sustainable tourism namely: Social Justice, Economic
Development, and Environmental Integrity.

Ecotourism is a part of sustainable tourism. It is a type of tourism involving

responsible travel to different areas especially the natural ones, conserving the
environment and improving the livelihood of indigenous people. Both
Developed and Developing countries are rapidly adapting it and including it in
their economic development and conservative strategies. Countries are realizing
the importance of ecotourism as a step towards Sustainable Development.

Ecotourism as an alternative tourism includes going to natural areas to learn, to

understand, and to carry on activities in an eco-friendly manner. In other words,
it is natural experience-based tourism which ensures the social and economic
development of indigenous communities. Its primary focus is on experiencing
and learning about nature, its structure or landscape, plant life, animal life and
their habitats as well as cultural artifacts from the locality. When ecotourism can
be implemented in policies through careful planning and strategic
implementation, it will lead to a symbiotic and complex relationship between
environment and tourist activities.

Ecotourism makes the community more sustainable by providing another means

of livelihood to native communities. This leads to community development in
such areas. It aims to protect and preserve resources especially natural resources
and maintain sustainable use of such resources, which creates an ecological
experience for travellers, and also gains economic benefit.

Thus, we can say that Ecotourism contributes to protection of natural

ecosystem, maintains the livelihood of native people, encourages responsible
behaviour by tourist, promotes local indigenous enterprises, focuses on local
participation, ownership and business opportunities, especially for backward
communities, and most importantly promotes learning experiences.

The term ECOSYSTEM was coined by Hector Ceballos Lascurain, a Mexican

environmentalist in 1983. It was initially used to define nature-based travel with
emphasis on education.

World Conservation Union [Brandon,1996] defined Ecotourism as

‘Environmentally responsible travel and visitation to relatively undisturbed
natural areas, in order to enjoy and appreciate nature that promotes
conservation, has low negative visitor impact, and provides for beneficially
active socio-economic involvement of local populations.

According to Patterson (2002), characteristics of an ecotourism business are that

it:

• Has a low impact upon a protected area’s natural resources and recreation
techniques.
• Involves stakeholders (individuals, communities, ecotourists, tour operators
and government institutions) in the planning, development, implementation and
monitoring phases

• Limits visit to areas, either by limiting group size and/or by the number of
groups taken to an area in a season

• Supports the work of conservation groups preserving the natural area on which
the experience is based.

• Orients customers on the region to be visited.

• Hires local people and buys supplies locally, where possible.

• Recognizes that nature is a central element to the tourist experience.

• Uses guides trained in interpretation of scientific or natural history.

• Ensures that wildlife is not harassed.

• Respects the privacy and culture of local people.

According to Chesworth (1995), Ecotourism has six characteristics. These are:

a) ecotourism involves travel to relatively undisturbed natural areas and/or
archaeological sites, b) it focuses on learning and the quality of experience, c) it
economically benefits the local communities, d) ecotourists seek to view rare
species, spectacular landscapes and/or the unusual and exotic, e) ecotourists do
not deplete resources but even sustain the environment Role or help undo
damage to the environment, and f) ecotourists appreciate and respect local
cultures and traditions etc.

It focuses primarily on experiencing and learning about nature, its landscape,

flora, fauna and their habitats, as well as cultural artifacts from the locality. A
symbiotic and complex relationship between the environment and tourist
activities is possible when this philosophy can be translated into appropriate
policy, careful planning and tactful practicum (Rahman, 2010).

Therefore, we can say that Ecotourism has 3 main functions:

1. Preserves the natural environment

2. Encourages the active participation and role of local communities

3. It is both sustainable as well as profitable at the same time.

STANDARDS OF ECOTOURISM (Weaver & Lawton, 2007):

a. Protection of the Ecosystem

• Maintenance of the ecosystem where the ecotourism attraction is located

• Protection and maintenance of wildlife especially endangered species

• Wildlife lives harmoniously with people

b. Maintenance of the physico-chemical conditions of the area

• Maintenance of the quality of fresh water and marine resources

• No wastes overflow and contamination of the environment (water, soil and air)

c. Conservation of local culture and history

• Culture of locality is maintained

• Historical structures are maintained as part of cultural heritage

d. Infrastructures and signboards blend with the environment

e. Sustainability

• Maintenance of Carrying Capacity of the environment;

• Environmental education program is part of the ecotourism package;

• Livelihood must benefit more the local community than outside entrepreneurs;

• The local government supports the ecotourism project through ordinances and
resolutions; and

• The Management Board (community-based) and appropriate government

agencies, e.g., DENR, support the project through strict enforcement of
environmental laws

• Experience and product management should follow principles and practices

associated with ecological, socio-cultural and economic sustainability.

Literature Review

The Japan Ecotourism Society gives the definition of ecotourism as

“ecotourism aims to activate local economies by providing tourists with
opportunities to experience local attractions accompanied by competent
interpreters while preserving local resources such as the natural
environment, the culture and historical heritages [Japan Ecotourism
Society].The five Main components with whose coordination this can be
achieved consists of government, local communities, researchers, tourism
industry and tourists . Ecotourism is not just limited to natural places but
it is much wider. Ecotourism is also concerned with experiencing local
lifestyles. Efforts to promote ecotourism has been taken since more than a
decade. Japanese government passed a law in 2008 to promote
ecotourism. Government took several steps which includes providing
support to community, human resource development and public
management. (Imagawa & Harrison, 2021)
Next in the row comes South Africa. It is evident that Africa has vivid
diversity of flora and fauna. It has vast tracts of land which is filled with
nature’s beauty and it offers an excellent chance for ecotourism
development. Ecotourism not only helps in conserving natural resources
but it also serves as a source of earning for local communities. But there
are certain obstacles which comes in the path of achieving this. 70% of
Sub-Saharan Africans live on almost $2 a day, millions of people are
infected with HIV and many people remains hungry each day. Hence
sustainable ecotourism will provide an opportunity for community
development and economic gains along with environmental 0protection.
(Parker & Khare, 2008)

Bangladesh has many attractive spots from the viewpoint of ecotourism,

it has a combination of verdant forest, riverine countryside, long stretches
of sun-bathed beaches, fearsome wildness and magnificent world's largest
mangrove forests. All of this provides a great potential for environment
friendly ecotourism. These attractive spots of ecotourism are divided into
two categories on the basis of nature and culture.

Natural areas: In this category the first thing that comes to mind is the
unique and magnificent Sundarbans mangrove forests, it has been
declared a Worlds Natural Heritage site by UNESCO which puts more
responsibility on Bangladesh to protect these forests. These forests are
also home to the world-renowned royal Bengal tiger, the most ferocious
predatory animal on earth. Other spots including the Chittagong hill
districts where 13 tribal groups live in an area of 2592.1 sq. km. The
natural beauties as well as the biodiversity including the different customs
and traditions of the localities could be an attractive spot for the eco-
tourists. 'Nijhum deep' in Noakhali district comprised of four small
Islands. It is famous for a beautiful forest which is not natural but planted
forest. The 'Nijhum Deep' is also one of the best breeding grounds for
hilsa fish in Bay of Bengal. Besides the Sundarbans, paddy fields,
Chittagong hill tracts, St. Martin's Island, Rangamati and kaptai lake are
also potential areas for ecotourism.

Cultural areas: In this category the 14th century pre-Mughal period Shatt
gambuz mosque at Bagerhat and other mosques, Hindu temples and
ancient Buddhist monasteries have great appeal to eco tourists. (Ahsan,
2008)

Costa Rica is a very popular country in Central America when it comes to

ecotourism. This small country is very rich in biodiversity and attracts
about 49% of its tourists from the USA. Its 21% of territory is marked for
conservation making it one of the highest ratios in the world. 5.1% of its
GDP is dependent upon tourism and has also been beneficial for creating
jobs. Costa Rica has done an immensely good job in protecting and
conserving its environment and further stopping and banning activities
that led to destruction of the ecosystem and the biodiversity. It became
the poster child of ecotourism and now over million acres of its land is
designated as protected areas. (Garg, 2022)

Colombia is the most bio-diverse country when it comes to ecotourism

and is a top destination for tourists. It has a large variety of forests,
glaciers, moors, etc. Pro Colombia which is a tourism agency makes sure
that tourists don't harm nature as well as the local communities. Utria
national park is extremely bio-diverse and is home to some of many rarest
birds and also runs educational schools to teach the younger generations
about conserving biodiversity. Also, to reduce emissions it has made
bicycle path to switch to greener capital. The number of national parks in
Colombia has increased from 2016 as well as the tourists which shows
that Colombia is becoming favourite destinations in terms of ecotourism.
(Benson, 2019)

Nepal is a small country and because of its natural environment and great
diversity of topographic and eco climatic features , spectacular
landscape , beautiful Himalayan ranges , ethnic diversity and rich
biodiversity has made it one of the best tourist attraction destination .In
Nepal's economy ecotourism plays a huge role , it has been successful in
employment generation , environment conservation and socio economic
development of the country . Also Nepalese government has taken huge
intiative in building national parks , buffer zones , conservation areas and
cultural heritage for conserving wildlife and ecotourism . Some of the
favorite ecotourism destinations in Nepal includes Sagarmatha national
park , Annapurna which is one of the most favourite trekking destinations
, Chitwan national park others are Baudhanath , Pashupatinath ,
Bhakatpur which comes under world cultural heritage sites. Nepal has a
bright future in ecotourism industry because of its God gifted natural
beauty that attracts thousands of tourists towards it every year (Anup
K.C. , 2016)

Finally let’s analyse the state of ecotourism in our own country. Several
studies have shown that though the government has come up with
ecotourism law “Ecotourism in India-Policy and guidelines” at the
national level but there has been no serious application of these laws
which has resulted in “formalism” to some extent. But if we look into the
whole matter, we will get to know that ecotourism policies in India have
two faces. One is negative and the other, one is positive. The positive side
reflects that success of ecotourism in some states like Kerala, Karnataka,
Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand and some north eastern states.
The local communities who reside in the forests have been expelled from
forests because they are thought to be at the centre of environmental
degradation. This can be considered as one of the reasons for the limited
success of ecotourism. Another factor for the limited success is the lack
of any mechanism to limit the number of visitor numbers which often
causes heavy burden on that particular place as well as the on the
resources. According to (Rastogi,2015) the unchecked number of tourists
to Corbett National Park has led to negative impact on environment and
local communities.

Research Methodology

We have collected our data with the help of secondary source by using
various research papers which were available online. Using primary data
would have been troublesome for us on the topic so we decided to use
secondary data instead. For having a more refined material on our topic
and eliminating the irrelevant ones we took the help of Google Scholar.
Google scholar made the task of getting relevant materials on Google
quite easy for us. We also took the help of Sci-hub. Many at times it
happens with us that most of the research papers are not available for free
as public distribution of these research papers are prohibited due to
copyright laws. Hence to overcome this problem we took the help of Sci-
hub which helps us in availing any research paper for free reading
without any restrictions or paywalls. They are doing justice with their
moto of removing any hurdles in the path of getting free and accessible
education. Finally, we had a comprehensive analysis of different research
papers and we were successful in completing our research paper with
flying colours.

EcoTourism in India and ASEAN Countries:

 Data Analysis

YEAR 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2

India 7.2 6.9 7.4 7.3 6.6 6

Malaysia 13.2 13.7 16.5 12.8 14.1 1

Vietnam 11 13.2 9.6 11.7 9.8 9

Indonesia 9.6 9 9.1 9.4 9.5 8

Laos 12.4 12.1 12.8 13.7 14.5 1

Singapore 8.9 8.3 9.1 8.9 8.9 9

Cambodia 24.6 24.6 24.1 22.7 24.9 2

Philippines 11.4 12 13.6 9 9.8 8

Myanmar 3.8 3.6 3.6 3.6 3.2 3

Thailand 15.8 16.7 17.5 16.8 15.7 1

Brunei 7.3 6 6.3 6 7.2 7

Darussalam
Analysis

Thailand is the country which has the highest number of tourist arrival
compared to other ASEAN countries. Thailand has contributed around
27% of the total number of tourist arrival in ASEAN countries in 2022. In
2022, ecotourism industry accounted 20.8% of total GDP. Ecotourism
industry has generated revenue of $42.54bn in 2022 which is highest
among ASEAN countries. The reasons behind these huge figures are
exotic wildlife, spectacular islands, delectable Thai food, unique culture,
government policies and the most important friendly people.

Malaysia is the second most favoured destination for tourists among

ASEAN countries after Thailand. Despite its late entry in ecotourism
industry, it has grown rapidly in the last one decade. In 2022, ecotourism
industry accounted 13.1% of total GDP. The number of tourist arrival has
gone up from 16.43 million in 2011 to 25.7 million in 2022. Although
Malaysia is a Muslim majority country, still it is focusing on its multi-
culture character. Apart from local culture they are also projecting the
culture of other major settlers like Chinese, Malaysians and Indians.

Ecotourism is one of the crucial industries in Singapore. It has

consistently contributed at a very high rate towards the GDP of the
nation. In 2022, ecotourism industry accounted 10% of total GDP. The
number of tourist arrival has doubled in the last decade. 2022 recorded
15.2 million tourists generating $22bn of revenue. Singapore is located
centrally among the ASEAN countries and therefore the tourists, when
they are coming to ASEAN countries, they are certainly visiting
Singapore. Singapore Tourism Board has promoted ecotourism by
projecting its culture, sports events, beaches, ancient colonial buildings. It
has promoted international malls like Paragon, Ion Orchards, The
Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, Vivo City and Orchard Central. Similarly,
a large number of 5 star and 7 star hotels of international standards have
been setup.

Generally, tourists visit Indonesia for culture and nature. Ecotourism

industry in Indonesia has helped in contributing towards the GDP of the
nation to large extent. In 2022, ecotourism industry of Indonesia
accounted 9.6% of total GDP of Indonesia. The revenue generated from
this industry has increased from $5.09bn in 2011 to $11.9bn in 2022. It
has been ranked 50th out of 141 countries in The Travel and Tourism
Competitiveness Report 2022. The number of tourist arrival has also gone
up from 5million in 2011 to 9.72million in 2022. The government has
also given high priority to few places such as Jakarta, Borobudur, Toba,
Thousand Islands, Labuan Bajo, Central Java, North Sumatra, Southeast
Sulawesi, TanjungKelayang, Wakatobi, Mandalika, West Nusa Tenggara
and many more. Government is also targeting 250 million trips by
domestic tourists by 2026. Most of the tourists come from Malaysia,
Singapore, Australia and China.

Vietnam is known for its beaches, rivers, cultural sites like Budhhist
Pagodas. In 2022, the ecotourism industry has contributed 13.9% of total
GDP. The revenue from ecotourism has increased from $2.3bn in 2011 to
$10.7bn in 2022. The increase in revenue is due to increase in the number
of tourist arrival from 3.46 million in 2011to 7.94 million in 2022. It has
been observed that the increase in the ecotourism industry is due to
improvement done by the government in the entertainment sector,
transportation and cuisine. The country has attracted veterans the most
due its nature and culture.
Laos,a South East Asian country whose ecotourism industry is growing
but at a decreasing rate. Laos is known for Buddhist monasteries, hill
tribe settlement, French colonies and mountainous terrain. In 2022, the
ecotourism industry has contributed 14% of total GDP. The revenue from
ecotourism has increased from $0.143bn in 2011 to $0.67bn in 2022. The
increase in revenue is due to increase in the number of tourist arrival from
0.67 million in 2011 to 4.6 million in 2022. Some of the famous tourist
destinations are LuangPrabang, Mekong River, VangVieng, Si Phan Don,
Plain of Jars, Wat Xieng Thong, Pha That Luang, Wat Phu, Pak Ou Caves
and ViengXai.

Philippines is a country which comprises of 7,641 islands with 82

provinces divided in 18 regions. It is known for its beaches, rich
biodiversity, mountains, islands, diving spots and rainforests. The
ecotourism industry has contributed 10.6% of total GDP in 2022. The
revenue from ecotourism has increased from $2.86bn in 2011 to $6.3bn in
2022. The increase in revenue is due to increase in number of tourist
arrival from 2.62 million in 2011 to 5.36 million in 2022. Palawan is one
of the islands which is declared as the best island in the world by many
travel magazines.

Cambodia is known for its tropical beaches, temples, colonial buildings

and abundance of natural beauty. The ecotourism industry has contributed
29.9% of total GDP in 2022. The revenue from ecotourism has increased
from $0.83bn in 2011 to $3.01bn in 2022. The increase in revenue is due
to increase in number of tourist arrival from 1.42 million in 2011 to 4.77
million in 2022.

Myanmar ecotourism is growing at a very slow rate and it is the nation

with more than 100 ethnic groups. Due to poor political condition, the
country has not seen much of the tourist arrival. The ecotourism industry
has contributed 5.9% of total GDP in 2022. The revenue from ecotourism
has increased from $0.083bn in 2011 to $1.91bn in 2022. The increase in
revenue is due to increase in number of tourist arrival from 0.66 million
in 2011 to 4.68 million in 2022.

Brunei is the small nation on the island of Borneo and this nation is
known for its beaches, rainforests and rich biodiversity. The ecotourism
industry has contributed 7.4% of total GDP in 2022. The revenue
generated by the ecotourism industry was $0.092bn, which was recorded
last time in the year 2021.The number of tourist arrival increased from
0.12 million in 2011 to 0.21 million in 2022. Government is taking
measures to diversify ecotourism by promoting sports tourism, Islamic
tourism and ecotourism.

Table explains about the ecotourism industry of different nations for last
10 years. It is evident that Myanmar has registered the highest growth
rate among the ASEAN nations and India. India’s growth rate in declining
which has to be seriously taken into consideration.

Ecotourism industry of India when compared to ASEAN nations is

lacking behind in many aspects, there are many reasons for poor statistics
of Indian ecotourism industry. Medical tourism is an evolving sector of
tourism in India. Medical tourism has a good future in India. Education
tourism is something on which India could focus more because of
availability of high quality teaching staff, premium institutions and a big
market for jobs. Government needs to take necessary actions to curb
corruption, tackle illiteracy and it should revamp its policies and norms in
order to increase the number of tourist arrival in India. Most of the
ASEAN nations are dependent on the ecotourism industry as they do not
have much scope in other industries unlike India, this could be one of the
 reasons for poor statistics of Indian ecotourism industry compared to
other nations.

 Ecotourism in South America

Ecotourism has become a highly desirable option for travellers who want
to experience natural areas which have immense hypnotising beauty full
of flora and fauna . Also ecotourism in addition has been successful in
reaching out to communities that want to preserve their culture , and to
environmental conservation and helping people economically by
generation of jobs in this area of sector.

South America is coming out as a favourite destination for travellers who

want to explore the best destinations that are rich in flora and fauna and
because of its bio-diverse places. One thing that tourists should keep in
mind is an ethical approach to tourism without harming the environment
and respecting it same with the local communities and to benefit them
and to preserve the cultural heritage.

 The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) launched a

best initiative called "Tourism Villages" in 2021 in which villages were
recognised who practised sustainable tourism practices and preserving
their local culture , heritage and community development . UNWTO aims
to promote a kind of tourism that benefits local communities as well as
protects the environment and these villages are the perfect example
settler.
 Mexico

Mexico is a place that is filled and bursting with colours and life
especially in Riviera Maya which is a stretch of Caribbean coastline on
Mexico's northeastern peninsula. Be it cenotes or ruins of the Mayan
temples the mutualism between the nature and the manmade creates a
feeling of calmness and relaxation . Xcaret which is an ecotourism park
allows visitors to enjoy themselves in nature , swim there and to be close
with the animals in the jungle like iguanas and peccaries .

 Guatemala

Guatemala is the perfect sustainable destination for those who are a fan
of romantic trips. There are four Majestic volcanoes in the capital city of
Guatemala which are active and do spurt lavas being a sight to behold.
Antigua which is a UNESCO World Heritage site is famous for its coffee
plantations and if we want a rest from all this and then take a break and
go to EL Pacaya which is one of the most accessible volcanoes. If you
want to experience natural beauty of Guatemala then nature reserve at
San Buenaventura is the perfect place .

 Nicaragua

Nicaragua has not been a much famous destination for ecotourism but
now more people are discovering the ecotourism activities here and the
warm hospitality that is shown by the local people. Be sure to spend some
time cycling to observe the streets of Granada and to look at the Spanish
colossal architecture and see the Mombacho Volcano National Park .
 Amazon Rain forests , Brazil

The Amazon Rain firsts have a vast and dynamic ecosystem which is
home to different types of plants and animals . It's the perfect destination
for evo friendly travelers as there is a mesmerising natural beauty as well
as flora and fauna and rare species of birds , we get a chance to be in
contact with the natural ecosystem.

 Chiloé island , Chile

Again it's a perfect destination for those eco travelers who wants to
experience the best Chilean culture . It's picturesque villages , rugged
coasts all are worth watching and the best way to experience the chilean
culture.
 Keywords Analysis

The green clusters show the ecotourism in the middle and all the
activities and concepts related to it . Occurrence of the term
ecotourism is 74 times and has been frequently used in publications.
The red group of clusters consists of 7 keywords and is related to
protection and conservation of the environment as well as some of the
most searched topics regarding tourism and its management with
tourism being the most searched keyword . The blue clusters consist
of a total of 6 keywords that show the comparative study and analysis
as well as topics related to tourism. The yellow keyword heritage
tourism Occurrence has been 5 and total link strength has been 15
which shows the number of publications in which 2 keywords occur
together. Ecotourism has been a really focused topic in some
countries that didn't practise it before . Countries are now more
focused on tourism that is related to showing their cultural heritage
and their naturally beautiful spots without compromising the
environment . Ecotourism has been flourishing and has been a great
source for tourist attractions as well as keeping in mind to conserve
and preserve the environment in the best ways possible.
 Journal Ranking

In the following list we've compiled and collected various sources published
by different different countries in the world. The first one being cuadernos
de desarrollo rural which is a specialized magazine and has been
publishing every year since 1979 . It's general theme is all the aspects
related to rural development in Colombian and Ibero American context.
e3s web of conferences is an open access publication that focuses on areas
related to Environment, Energy and Earth sciences. This journal also
covers the technological and scientific aspects as well as social and
economic matters. The number of citations are 168 which means to show
that how much a published work has been cited. WIT transactions on
ecology and the environment includes volumes related to following subject
area like , ecology, water resources , air pollution , environmental health ,
sustainable development, etc. The source with the highest citations
includes cuadernos de desarrollo rural , current issues in tourism ,e3s web
of conferences and the lowest is WIT transactions on ecology and the
environment.

document citation total link

source s s strength
cuadernos de desarrollo rural 2 301 17
current issues in tourism 2 286 1
e3s web of conferences 2 168 14
ecological economics 2 97 21
international journal of tourism
research 2 72 13
journal of ecotourism 3 56 3
journal of mountain science 3 55 0
journal of sustainable tourism 7 33 0
springer proceedings in business
and economics 2 24 12
sustainability (Switzerland) 6 6 0
tourism geographies 2 5 3
tourism management 2 5 0
wit transactions on ecology and
the environment 2 0 0

 Contribution of countries
Ecotourism has been a prevailing activity in that has been
following by countries in order to preserve and conserve their
natural areas and cultural heritage. Also to promote the
Sustainable tourism and not to compromise with environment or
to harm it in anyway. The following list of 27 countries shows the
contribution of countries worldwide in the field of ecotourism and
the number of publications of magazines , journal ,articles and
other periodicals in ecotourism and it's related concepts. The
countries that are at the top are United States , United Kingdom ,
Germany , Italy , turkey . If we take United States there are total
of 14 documents that are published in terms of magazines ,
journals or articles or other periodicals , and it's citation being
472 which shows the no of times the published work has been cited
. The countries with the least contribution includes Egypt ,
Ukraine , Poland , Vietnam , Romania , Hong Kong.
 Country T
L
CS
United Kingdom 9
18
Germany 3
52
Finland 2
52

1
United states 4
48
Italy 6
33
Turkey 5
92
Australia 4
98

South Africa 3
85
Serbia 5
61
Spain 4
52

Russian federation 9
41

South Korea 2
41
India 5
38
Pakistan 2
31
1
China 0
38
Malaysia 2
32
Kazakhstan 2
33
Argentina 3
27
Croatia 3
11
Mexico 6
11
Viet Nam 2
18
Hong Kong 2
17
Iran 2
11
Romania 3
86
Poland 4
36
Ukraine 2
17
Egypt 2
01

Authors
docume citatio
author nts ns
Jaafar
m. 2

Mannin
g r.e. 2

Chiodo
e. 2

Salvato
re r. 2

Zhang
y. 2
DOCUMENTS BY
YEAR
When we will comaparatively analyse the documents which were published
yearly we will see that the number of documents produced on “comparative
analysis of ecotourism in different countries” is initially very less and gradually
the number has risen. The number of documents between 1986 to 1990
published on ecotourism is zero. In 1991 one document was published on the
specified topic. It keeps on fluctuating till 2015 and suddenly we can notice a
high number of documents being published till 2021 which is 1151 and again
the number falls.

CONCLUSION

The general trend in ecotourism is to increase experiences by encouraging

activities such as long-distance walking, camping, boating, hunting, sight-
seeing, swimming, cultural activities, bicycling, observing wildlife and nature,
skiing, visiting historical places, and horse riding among others. Generally,
instructive activities, for example, wildlife observation, participation in
festivals, cultural activities and nature landscapes, attract most attention.
Activities like hiking, outdoor sports, picnic, paragliding arranged according to
different areas of interest influence the preferences of many visitors .According
to Soykan, for Europeans rural roads are natural and cultural heritages. This is
because they have natural, economic and cultural identities. Some give us
opportunity to familiarize with local planting patterns by passing through
agricultural lands, some lie among virgin natural areas with beautiful views (e.g.
forests, rivers, lakes) and some connect the settlements which have unique
cultural monuments. Therefore, in many countries in Europe (specifically
Austria, Switzerland and France, which have mountainous areas) long distance
trekking is well-organized in order for ecotourism to have a sustainable
development, the analyses for determining land use suitability’s gain
importance. It and other similar methods set standards or ranges of acceptable
change and describe a methodology for determining these standards, measuring
impacts and identifying management strategies for controlling negative impacts.
They include recent years resources assessments have adopted opportunity
spectrum methods.
Also, “Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Methods” are used widely in detecting
land use suitabilities. The integration of ELECTRE, to give the order of
precedence of uses, with GIS, a quite important means in spatial planning
studies, will enable to reach successful results. Studies for determining the
suitabilities for use of a land for ecotourism will also determine the
development of the land in the following years and the sustainability of its
resource values. In the eco-tourism plans, diversifying economic and ecologic
activities by starting and developing organized eco-tourism practice, enhancing
the life quality of the locals with the economic gains provided by eco-tourism,
increasing the participation of habitat conservation, improving environmental
conscious, conserving natural, cultural and historical landscape values and
passing them onto the next generation and popularizing ecotourism planning
with the support and participation of responsible and related organizations
should be aimed. Good planning of natural and cultural elements that create
resources for eco-tourism activities and their management will make important
contributions to the local public. (Gültekin, 2010). While envisioned as a
positive approach towards sustainable development, unplanned or poorly
planned and implemented tourism can have serious negative effects on the
environment and on communities, offsetting the benefits it was designed to
provide. In order to anticipate negative impacts and to prevent or mitigate them,
ecotourism impacts monitoring is required.
Various tendencies also occur in the understanding of tourism upon changing
living conditions. More tranquil, natural and original spaces are preferred to
ordinary tourism centers. Likewise, individuals have begun to prefer activities,
which they can particularly perform in naturel and cultural areas and with which
they can learn original cultural values and be within the nature, instead of sea-
sand-sun tourism. At this point, “Ecotourism” activities have particularly
recently become sectors which can create great changes both in socio-cultural
and economic aspects. Main purpose is not only ensuring the socio-economic
development but also the protection of natural and cultural landscape values to
ensure awareness of nature conservation on the other hand. Ecotourism should
be seen in direct relation to nature conservation (protected areas), with
preservation of the authentic and involving local communities in all stages of
the process. Development process is a lengthy process, which requires a
sustained effort from all those involved but can bring major benefits in the long
term, contribute directly to the creation of "sustainable existing’’ target area.
Ecotourism is about (Roxana, 2012);
 environmentally responsible travel to relatively undisturbed natural areas,
 travel in order to enjoy, study and appreciate nature,  the promotion of
conservation,
 combining sustainable development with the natural environments,
 the use of natural assets and resources in ecologically sensitive areas to create
unique visitor experiences with minimal impact on the area.
After research we can draw the main conclusions of this work, as it follows:
 Ecotourism is a form of tourism developed in natural areas, whose goal is to
acknowledge and to appreciate nature and local culture, which includes
conservation measures and ensures an active involvement, generating benefits
for the local population;
 Ecotourism clothes the sustainable tourism principles, but differs from it by
aspects related to local community issues, interpretation for visitors to a
particular destination, the number of visitors;
 Tourism has a complex impact on the environment, but it is also generating
both cost and benefits;
 The interest of tourists for travel in natural areas (land or water) has increased
recently;
 Ecotourism contributes to increased revenues from tourism, but also to the
positive social effects;
 Worldwide, there are a large number of natural areas associated with a
specific cultural diversity, resulting in particular through the perpetuation of the
long traditions and customs;
 Tourists have a certain responsibility towards the destination visited and the
environment by their choice itself, behaviour and activities performed in that
space, and therefore it is important to be informed about the quality and
sensitivity of destinations
These principles should be envisaged both for lovers of this form of tourism and
service providers of such eco-touristic products. Basic purposes of ecotourism
are to preserve and utilize natural and cultural resources in a sustainable way
and to enable economic development of local people. However, achieving the
aims in ecotourism depends on whether they are environmentally and
ecologically sustainable and economically applicable. In order to achieve these,
a participative tourism planning is required.
Now that ecotourism has reached such stature, it is especially important to
scrutinize its effectiveness as a strategy for sustainable development, and search
for ways to improve policies and practices. Clearly ecotourism is not a universal
remedy; but its potential to promote sustainable development deserves
considerable attention. In conclusion, According to Kiper, Özdemir and Sağlam
(2011); ecotourism activities which are not performed according to the purpose,
the principles and the characteristics cause the disturbance in environmental,
economic and socio-cultural fields due to over-intensification to be occurred
especially in sensitive ecosystems like naturel and cultural areas. Therefore, in
order to provide sustainability in the ecotourism, it is necessary to know
environmental, social and economical effects of ecotourism activities and to
consider these effects during the planning. Tourism planning purposes this.
relationship between rational resources requirements Ensuring the sustainable
use of natural (water, vista, topography, clean air, natural vegetation structure,
microclimatic features of climate, marine and coastal topographic structure and
motion, etc.) and cultural resources (Archeological heritage, Religious
structures, Conventional architecture, Traditional social activities) to the
evaluation of the physical planning decisions in the field of ecological planning
strategies . Additionally, According to Bunruamkaew & Murayama (2012);
ecotourism development must promote educational development and create
awareness in people of the need to jointly maintain the ecosystem of the area.
There is a need to implement development plans and manage natural resources
in a way that ensures ecological and environmental integrity. Environmental
education and interpretation is the key to creating an enjoyable and meaningful
ecotourism experience, and is one of the key points of differentiation between
ecotourism and other tourism products. Successful interpretive components of
ecotourism products will foster appreciation and support for conservation
efforts, local communities and culture.
Thus, It is important for countries to follow eco-tourism practices.

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