CROSS-BORDER SOCIO-ECONOMIC MONITORING SYSTEM IN THE ŠUMAVA AND BAVARIAN FOREST NATIONAL PARKS

ABSTRACT

The management of the Šumava (Bohemian Forest) and Bavarian Forest National Parks have long been working in the field of natural science research. However, visitor monitoring in these protected areas has been given little attention so far. Successful management of national parks must combine the requirements of nature protection with public use. The aim of the paper is to suggest using cross-border socio-economic monitoring variables to increase the satisfaction of visitors to the national parks without jeopardising the value of the protected area.
From 2016 to 2017, expert interviews on the objective of monitoring national parks were carried out at the management level of the Bavarian Forest and Šumava National Parks. The content and objectives of the sustained socio-economic monitoring of the two national parks is to suggest improvements in the tourist offer. The main changes are proposed in the following areas: specifications of target groups, infrastructure development, cross-border trip innovation, ecological requirement, customisation of information for visitors.
The results will provide an important basis for regional development strategies for sustainable tourism. The data imply direct priority actions and, in conjunction with existing scientific data, it will be possible to derive important management measures. Specifically, the use of results is mainly for specific offers for different target groups, such as families with children, wheelchair users, drafting proposals for cross-border excursions using public transport.
The main objective of this analysis is to understand the needs of foreign visitors better and respond to them with a suitable offer to promote cross-border exchange, which provide a competitive advantage for these parks.

Keywords: national park, socio-economic monitoring, visitors