نوع مقاله : مقاله پژوهشی
عنوان مقاله English
نویسندگان English
Aim: This study aims to identify and prioritize the barriers to the development of ecotourism lodges in Khorasan Razavi Province. Despite the province's significant tourism potential, the expansion of these lodges faces infrastructural, economic, managerial, and cultural challenges. This study examines these barriers and proposes solutions to improve conditions and facilitate the sustainable development of ecotourism accommodations.
Material & Method: This research employs a cross-sectional survey methodology conducted in the winter of 2025 and is applied in nature. Data were collected through a questionnaire comprising 31 items based on a Likert scale. The statistical population consisted of 23 first-grade ecotourism lodges in Khorasan Razavi Province, from which 13 were selected using purposive sampling. Additionally, local experts, including lodge owners, tourism officials, village administrators, and ecotourism stakeholders, were chosen as respondents. Data analysis was performed using one-sample t-tests, one-way ANOVA, and the MEREC multi-criteria decision-making model in SPSS.
Finding: The study findings indicate that economic and livelihood challenges are the primary barriers to the development of ecotourism lodges in Khorasan Razavi Province, while socio-cultural and managerial challenges also play significant roles. The results of the one-way ANOVA test confirmed significant differences among the studied villages, attributed to infrastructural conditions, government support, and cultural acceptance. Furthermore, the MEREC model revealed that economic issues hold the greatest weight among the barriers to development. These findings underscore the need for economic support policies, cultural awareness initiatives, and improvements in managerial infrastructure.
Conclusion: The study concludes that the development of ecotourism lodges in Khorasan Razavi Province is significantly influenced by economic, social, managerial, and infrastructural barriers. Economic challenges, particularly limited investment and high operational costs, pose the most critical obstacles. Additionally, cultural resistance and insufficient government support have hindered growth in certain areas.
کلیدواژهها English
1. Introduction
Ecotourism is a rapidly growing sector of the tourism industry that plays a crucial role in promoting sustainable tourism by emphasizing biodiversity conservation, strengthening local cultures, and empowering rural communities. Beyond providing responsible experiences for tourists and mitigating environmental impacts, this form of tourism contributes to the economic and social development of rural areas and facilitates the introduction of authentic natural and cultural attractions. Despite these advantages, the development of ecotourism accommodations faces several challenges, including inadequate infrastructure, financial constraints, lack of training, weak policy frameworks, managerial shortcomings, and the risk of commercializing local culture. Identifying these barriers and proposing effective strategies to address them is essential for the sustainable development of these small-scale, community-driven enterprises. Accordingly, the present study aims to identify and prioritize the challenges in developing ecotourism accommodations and to provide practical recommendations for their improvement.
2. Materials and Methods
In this study, first-class ecotourism accommodations in Khorasan Razavi Province were selected as the research area due to their environmental diversity, religious significance, and high potential for ecotourism development. According to official statistics from 2024, out of 23 active first-class ecotourism accommodations in the province, 13 were purposefully selected as the sample. Data on the location and characteristics of these accommodations were collected from the Provincial Directorate of Cultural Heritage. The present research is applied in nature and employed a cross-sectional survey method conducted in winter 2024. To identify the barriers to the development of ecotourism accommodations, a set of indicators was developed based on theoretical foundations and expert opinions. The data collection instrument was a questionnaire comprising 31 items, structured on a Likert scale, focusing on five dimensions: managerial–policy, infrastructural, economic–livelihood, socio–cultural, and environmental–productivity. For data analysis, a one-sample t-test was used to assess the status of challenges, and a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied to compare the mean values across the studied villages. Additionally, to determine the relative importance of each dimension, the MEREC multi-criteria decision-making method was employed. This method identifies the weight of each criterion based on the effect of criterion elimination, using steps including the formation of a decision matrix, normalization, performance calculation for alternatives, evaluation of the effect of criterion removal, and determination of final weights.
3. Results and Discussion
The findings of this study indicate that the development of ecotourism accommodations in the examined villages is primarily influenced by economic barriers. Livelihood challenges, lack of investment, and insufficient financial support exhibited the highest mean values and t-scores. Following these, socio–cultural challenges—including negative local attitudes and limited community participation—and managerial and policy-related obstacles were identified, while infrastructural and environmental barriers demonstrated lower intensity. The ANOVA analysis further revealed significant differences among the villages, indicating that the severity of these barriers varies according to local conditions; notably, Ghiathiyeh village experienced the highest level of barriers, whereas Kang village faced the lowest. Additionally, the MEREC multi-criteria decision-making analysis confirmed the predominance of economic factors and ranked socio–cultural challenges second. These patterns suggest that ecotourism, as a key driver of rural development, is simultaneously affected by structural, social, and institutional factors. Strengthening this sector therefore requires focused attention on financial support, improvement of the business environment, enhancement of local community participation, and the development of managerial capabilities. Moreover, inter-village differences underscore the necessity of regional planning and context-specific interventions. These findings provide policymakers and planners with evidence to design more targeted and effective strategies for the development of ecotourism accommodations, addressing the primary barriers according to their priority.
4. Conclusions
Ecotourism accommodations, as small-scale local businesses, play a crucial role in promoting sustainable development, reducing economic leakage, and preserving the environment. In Iran, these accommodations have experienced significant growth due to climatic diversity, local architectural heritage, and government support. However, their development faces multiple challenges, including economic and livelihood difficulties, lack of investment, cultural resistance, inefficient management, weak policy frameworks, and infrastructural limitations. Findings from this study in Khorasan Razavi Province indicate that economic and livelihood challenges, exhibiting the highest impact, constitute the primary barriers to the development of ecotourism accommodations, followed by socio–cultural, managerial, and infrastructural challenges. Although environmental issues carry less weight, if neglected, they may become significant obstacles in the future. ANOVA analysis further revealed significant inter-village differences in the intensity of barriers, reflecting the influence of local conditions, infrastructure levels, government support, and cultural acceptance. Additionally, the MEREC multi-criteria decision-making model confirmed the predominance of economic and livelihood factors and highlighted the notable role of socio–cultural and managerial challenges. These findings align with both domestic and international studies (Dehdashti et al., 2024; Ghasemi & Hamedfar, 2022; Shalbafian & Taherian, 2022; Bulatović, 2017) and underscore the necessity of a comprehensive approach that incorporates financial support, infrastructure improvement, community empowerment, sustainable management, effective branding, and coordinated policymaking. To achieve sustainable development of ecotourism accommodations, it is recommended to strengthen digital marketing and online booking platforms, provide tax incentives to attract investment, establish monitoring systems for quality and services, organize cultural events and local festivals, adopt green technologies, and develop rural transport infrastructure. Implementing these strategies can reduce key barriers, enhance local community participation, and facilitate the sustainable development of ecotourism accommodations, ultimately contributing to employment generation, economic growth, and the preservation of local culture.
5. Acknowledgement & Funding
The authors, as faculty members of the University of Tehran, declare that this research was conducted without any financial support. The authors also express their gratitude for the scientific collaboration and support provided by all participants involved in the study.
6. Conflict of Interest
The authors hereby declare that there are no conflicts of interest related to the preparation, data, or publication of this article.
