Tourism and nature. An exploratory study of the Vale do Guadiana Nature Park 25 Years Later

Abstract

This article intends to highlight the relationship between tourism and nature conservation, as a significant competitive advantage for the territory of Mértola. The 25 years since the creation of the Protected Area of the Vale do Guadiana Nature Park and the exponential growth in demand for nature tourism in regions of low population density both serve as a line of research that aims to find a future strategy within the themes of sustainability and territorial development. The goal is to clarify how these territorial dynamics can be incorporated in a local development strategy based on the tourism industry, which aims to achieve economic growth through proper structuring, involving all development agents and entities, and the local community. The work herein presented can be classified as descriptive research, insofar as it provides the description of several facts, but also analytical and explanatory research. The knowledge arising from this exploratory study aims to encourage a responsible participation in the strategy that may be created, and facilitate the establishment of an information distribution network focused on the promotion of all nature and landscape richness of the PNVG (Nature Park of Vale do Guadiana). Through this work, it was possible to verify the importance that the PNVG has been acquiring throughout the years regarding the protection of biodiversity and landscape preservation. It has shown that it is possible to reconcile nature conservation with economic activities, such as tourism, in a low-density territory, as is the case of Mértola.