Economics and Management of Geotourism

This book covers all aspects of the economics and management of  geotourism, an increasingly important sector of nature tourism that  focuses on the geology and landscape of different territories, providing  a pleasurable and educational tourist experience. Geotourism is a  sustainable form of tourism that has the potential to deliver  significant benefits to host communities. To date, however, geotourism  has been examined primarily from the natural sciences perspective, to  the detriment of issues related to local social and economic impacts,  inter-organizational collaboration, tourist responses, and community  participation. This book therefore fills a major gap in the literature.  While a key focus is the impacts of geotourism on economic and social  development processes and the quality of life of local populations,  detailed attention is also devoted to topics such as geopark and  geosystem management, innovative and entrepreneurial strategies in  geotourism, and territorial marketing. In addition, readers will gain a  clear understanding of the extent to which the opportunities and  challenges facing geotourism reflect current trends in the tourist  industry as a whole.