Perceptions of Cipó mountain range national park (MG, Brazil) visitors for geotourism

Abstract

Natural areas, rather than food sources and shelter from the urban routine, are information that should be better known. The protected areas are useful spaces for the development of the knowledge of nature and of the societies themselves. In the present work it was intended to know the visitor of the National Park of Serra do Cipó – NPSC (MG, Brazil) and if it can be considered a geotourist. The sample of 50 visitors was randomly interviewed in a stream on the Farofa Waterfall Trail in the year 2014, through a qualified qualitative-quantitative form. The results show that: visitors are tourists (70%); do not seek the geology (62%) of the park, being the main motivations “waterfalls” (24%) and “contemplation of nature” (12%); believe that knowledge of geology helps in understanding the landscape (32%); relate geological heritage to rocks and relief (28%) and that their importance is due to life on Earth (24%), that their degradation diminishes the attractiveness of the landscape (96%) and they are interested (98%) in knowing more, in particular geology and geomorphology (58%); do not know what is geotourism (46%) and of these believe that the park can be conserved through geotourism (96%); do not know what a geopark is (66%) but correlate it to the protection of geological heritage (35%) and consider that geopark benefits include preservation, scientific research and education (65%). It is concluded that although the NPSC visitor may be considered an “accidental” and “curious” geotourist with the potential to become “conscious”, geotourism in protected areas is a niche rather than a segment. This presents the need for more demand research to define geotourism as a segment, as well as improving its offer, through the formatting of geotourism products to be commercialized by travel agencies, parks and Geoparks, with interpretation of guided geodiversity (Tour Guides) or self-guided (signage by boards and panels) for visitors.