Protected areas and opportunities for ecotourism in Latvia Valdis Pilâts Gauja National Park, Baznîcas iela 3, Sigulda, LV-2150, Latvia [email protected] Introduction In Latvia similarly to elsewhere, nature based tourism and nature protection have clo- sely evolved. For instance, Gauja River valley with sandstone outcrops became a fa- mous destination place for travellers already at the beginning of the 19th century. German travellers who compared it to the Elba in Saxony and to the “Switzerland of Saxony” called it the “Switzerland of Livland”. In 1920s the first three areas of Gauja valley obtained the status of protected areas, and in 1930s a National Park of 375 ha was created there. During the first period of independence in the first half of 20th century Latvia had a powerful tourism industry. Income from tourism was almost twice the income from our main export product - bacon. Already in the 1930’s tourism was regar- ded as an essential component of regional development, which succeeded in stimula- ting economic development, maintaining the traditional rural landscape and also play- ing a role in public education about history and nature. Unfortunately, during the mid 1900’s Latvia was once again embroiled in war, and incorporated in the Soviet Union. As a result it was isolated behind the “iron curtain” and therefore still is a “blank spot “ on today’s European and World tourist maps. Nowadays Latvia similarly to other Eastern European States in post-communist transition period is looking for new ways to strengthen national economy. Tourism is one of the areas with greatest potential for development. According to the Government Declaration one of main priorities for tourism development is rural tourism as well as ecotourism in protected and coastal areas. The aim of this study was to evaluate the resources of nature-based tourism in Latvia paying special attention to the current use of protected areas, the keystones of ecotourism development (Boo 1994). Materials and methods The study was based on both questionnaire data and summaries of different published materials for tourists. The questionnaires launched in 2000 were directed to tourism managers at administrative district level as well as to some tourism entrepreneurs who have received the “Green Certificate” of the Latvian Country Tourism Association “Lau- ku celotâjs”. Tourism managers working mainly in Tourism Information Centres were asked to give data on nature areas or monuments serving as tourism attraction in their administrative district. Data including availability of information (signs, guidebooks, maps etc.) and services (guides, tourism equipment rent, catering, accommodation etc.), their access as well as opportunities for open-air activities (walking, cycling and horse riding paths, sight platforms and towers, camp sites, possibility for fishing etc.) were requested in order to evaluate the preparedness of sites to entertain tourists. Respon- ses were received from 21 of 26 administrative districts. Information from different guidebooks was used for the evaluation of the remaining five districts. Countryside ○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○ The Finnish Environment 485 ○○○○○○○○○○○ 305 tourism entrepreneurs were asked to give data both on sites of natural and cultural heritage serving as tourism attraction in the vicinity of their houses to find out how well informed about such sites respondents are. Responses were received from 15 tou- rism entrepreneurs. Additionally, administrations of protected areas were inquired about their management staff. The data received were critically assessed. Some nature sites were excluded from the lists if they could be classified only as potential or insignificant tourism attractions, e.g. bogs that need special arrangements to become accessible for visitors. The re- ported legal status of sites listed was also checked. Availability of resources for nature- based tourism was analysed both on administrative districts level and level of four historical regions of Latvia. The SWOT (strengths, weakness, opportunities and thre- ats) analysis regarding the use of nature-based tourism resources in Latvia was carried out, too. Results and discussion Diversity of ecotourism resources While neither World Wars nor the communist regime spared the lives of people, nature has returned to many places they had to leave. Therefore Latvia’s natural environment nowadays is surprisingly rich and diverse. There are not many countries, especially in Europe, whose territories are more than 50 percent covered by ecosystems that are relatively untouched by man: forests, mires, lakes, and rivers. Latvia’s competitive advantages for tourism, especially ecotourism development are diverse, mosaic type landscapes; high biodiversity including unique biotopes; relics and natural monuments; numerous populations of wildlife species threatened in Western Europe, wide system of protected areas, as well as rich cultural heritage including outstanding monuments of history, architecture and archaeology; living customs, traditions and folklore; an- cient annual festivals and intense contemporary culture life. Fewer opportunities are for adventure type tourism activities. When analysing questionnaire data it was revealed that a quite wide spectrum of nature objects were used as main tourism attraction sites. Most of them (24%) are lakes. They, as well as rivers (12%) are used mostly for active recreational purposes: boating, fishing and swimming. Together with other recreational areas (e.g. nature parks) these sites make almost half (44%) of all nature based tourism attractions. Rat- her popular are different interesting biotopes: natural forests, coastal meadows, fish- ponds, coastal lakes and mires (mainly as birding sites), etc. comprising 12% of all sites. Approximately of the same number are different geological monuments: cliffs (outcrops of primary rocks), caves, springs, boulders, etc. The Seacoast with 9 sites or 5% of all is among the most popular tourism attractions. Nature trails (currently 6% of all sites) gain increasing number of visitors and popularity. Abundance and distribution of ecotourism resources Distribution of natural and cultural tourism resources in Latvia is rather uneven. The questionnaires revealed that the number of nature sites currently used as main tourism attractions is ranging from 3 to 17, or 8 sites in average, per one administrative district (2500km²). The number of these sites depends both on natural heritage including pro- tected areas and tourism traditions in each administrative unit. For example, Southern Latvia is mainly agricultural region. There are few nature areas (including protected 306 ○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○The Finnish Environment 485 areas) and therefore few nature based tourism sites. At the same time an area rich in cultural monuments including manor houses with parks is located there. The Eastern part of Latvia is richest in lakes. There are also quite many protected areas, but the number of nature-based tourism sites per administrative unit usually does not exceed the average. According to the data of Countryside Tourism Association, in 2000 the second largest amount of visitors has been accommodated in Cçsis district (NE part of Latvia) - an administrative unit having the highest number (17) of nature tourism sites. 13 of them are located in the Gauja National Park covering almost one third of the district’s area. Moreover, these are only the most popular tourism sites. Additionally several hundreds of different geological objects alone are located in the area of the Gauja NP: outcrops of primary rocks, caves, karst swallow holes, springs, waterfalls, valleys, glens, boulders and mires. Beside nature sites, Gauja NP is also rich in cultural monuments, total number of which reaches 547 in the territory of the Park and its close vicinity. Churches, castles and their ruins, castle mounds, manor-houses, Medieval graveyards, objects of national construction – farm-houses and yards, scattered buildings, grana- ries, threshing barns as well as cult places, border-stones, sign-stones and ancient batt- lefields are among them. Typically, such culture-based ecotourism resources can be found almost in every larger protected nature area of Latvia. When analysing the list of State protected cultural monuments it can be noticed that in every administrative district there are approximately 100-300 such potential tourism sites. Some of them, for examp- le, cult trees and sign-stones might be regarded both as cultural and natural monument. Inquiry of countryside tourism entrepreneurs revealed that they also know better cul- tural monuments situated in vicinity of their houses than nature tourism sites. A special case is Latvia’s seacoast. For 50 years after the World War II almost 2/3 of it were erased from the rest of Latvia’s territory. This territory was considered to be the near bordering zone of the former USSR with limited freedom of movement and eco- nomic activity. As a result, very many residents left the area and the environment remained untouched. There is no other place in Europe, where sandy beaches without any cottages, hotels, restaurants and crowds of people would cover almost 300 km (of Latvia‘s 500 km long coast). Coastal areas host also important bird habitats and wet- lands of great significance, representing unique biotopes rarely found in Europe. On one hand all it provides the necessary pre-requisites for the development of eco-tou- rism, on the other hand there