Nemanja Tomić

Canyons and gorges as potential geotourism destinations inSerbia: comparative analysis from two perspectives – generalgeotourists’ and pure geotourists’

Abstract Serbia represents one of those countries which have not yet differentiated themselves on the world tourism map. However, it has an immense but still unrevealed potential for geotourism development. In this paper we analyzed several remarkable canyons and gorges of great scientific importance and geotourism potential. These sites include the Djerdap Gorge and Lazar River Canyon, located in Eastern Serbia and the Ovcar-Kablar Gorge and Uvac Canyon located in Western Serbia. One of the main goals of this paper was to analyze and compare the current state and tourism potential of these geosites by using the M-GAM model for geosite assessment. However, the principal aim of the paper is to analyze how important is each subindicator in the assessment process for different market segments. In this paper, we also analyzed how giving different importance to subindicators can influence the position of the geosites in the matrix indicating different assessment done by two chosen market segments. The research showed that general geotourists appreciate considerably different values when assessing a geosite in comparison to pure geotourists. The paper can be used as framework for developing the tourism management strategy of geosites taking into consideration the needs and preferences of the target market segments.

Geoheritage and geotourism potential of the Homolje area (eastern Serbia)

Abstract The region of Homolje in Eastern Serbia represents an area rich with numerous geological and geomorphological features, especially karst formations which are excellent representatives of this area’s geodiversity. However, the geotourism potential of these geosites still remains fully unrevealed. In this paper we analyzed the most representative ones based mainly on their aesthetic value as well as their geotourism potential. The aim of this paper is to emphasize the geotourism potential of Homolje and to determine its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats as well as interactions between them when it comes to tourism development. The results of the SWOT and TOWS analysis indicate that Homolje as a tourist destination possesses immense geotourism potential but is still in the exploration phase according to the Butler tourist cycle of destination evolution. Research results also identify four different strategies which can be applied as solutions for current problems and for further tourism development.

Speleotourism in Slovenia: balancing between mass tourism and geoheritage protection

Abstract Slovenia is considered as the cradle of karst geotourism as cave tourism started there as early as the Middle Ages. To date more than 12,000 caves were discovered from which 22 have the status of tourist caves. From these, 10 were assessed using the M-GAM model (Modified Geosite Assessment Model) to gain information for better future management strategies. The results show that visitors of Slovenian tourist caves mostly appreciate their natural values, as they prefer caves without major tourism infrastructure and they pay attention to their protection status. The model also confirmed that the two most important tourist caves (Postojna Cave and Škocjan Caves) have the leading geotourism role and that the management of tourist caves via a regional park as is the case of Škocjan Caves is an example of good practice.

Exploring the Potential for Speleotourism Development in Eastern Serbia

The region of Eastern Serbia is a highly dominant karst terrain with numerous geological and geomorphological features, especially caves. The speleotourism potential of these caves and other geosites still remains fully unrevealed. In this paper, we analyzed several caves with immense geotourism potential. These caves include Ceremošnja Cave, Ravništarka Cave, Resavska Cave, Rajkova Cave, Lazareva Cave and Vernjikica Cave. The aim of this paper is to emphasize the speleotourism potential of Eastern Serbia and to determine the current state and speleotourism potential of caves located in this area by applying the modified geosite assessment model (M-GAM). The results indicate that further speleotourism development should primarily be focused towards Rajkova Cave which has the highest main values. The results also emphasize the importance of additional (tourist) values which are currently at a low level among all analyzed geosites. This especially refers to tour guide service, interpretive panels and promotional activities which proved to be key elements at these types of destinations. Major improvement of these elements is necessary in the future in order to attract a larger number of visitors to these sites.