Accessible Tourism in Protected Natural Areas: An Empirical Study in the Lazio Region

Pasca, Maria Giovina; Elmo, Grazia Chiara; Arcese, Gabriella; Cappelletti, Giulio Mario; Martucci, Olimpia

doi:10.3390/su14031736

Open AccessArticle

Accessible Tourism in Protected Natural Areas: An Empirical Study in the Lazio Region

by

Maria Giovina Pasca

^1,*

,

Grazia Chiara Elmo

²,

Gabriella Arcese

¹

,

Giulio Mario Cappelletti

³

and

Olimpia Martucci

⁴

¹

Faculty of Economics, Niccolò Cusano University, Via Don Carlo Gnocchi n. 3, 00166 Rome, Italy

²

Department of Economics, Business, Mathematics and Statistics, University of Trieste, Via Valerio n. 4/1, 34127 Trieste, Italy

³

Department of Economics, Management and Territory, University of Foggia, Via A. da Zara, 10, 71121 Foggia, Italy

⁴

Department of Business Studies, Roma Tre University, Via Silvio D’Amico n. 77, 00145 Rome, Italy

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Sustainability 2022, 14(3), 1736; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14031736

Submission received: 28 December 2021 / Revised: 19 January 2022 / Accepted: 30 January 2022 / Published: 2 February 2022

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Accessible Tourism in Protected Natural Areas (PNAs))

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Abstract

The article aims to analyze the state of the art on services provided by protected natural areas in the Lazio region. The paper highlights the strengths and the aspects to improve in these protected natural areas to promote and incentivize accessible and inclusive tourism. An empirical investigation involving the region of Lazio (Italy) was performed, adopting a quantitative research design. First, the authors collected secondary data on the protected natural areas in the region and on the services available. Then, a questionnaire was used to quantitatively investigate the services provided to meet the needs of tourists with disabilities. The findings show that the structures provide essential services, such as marked paths, equipped bathrooms, various aids to overcome obstacles along the visit route and flooring that allows accessible transit. However, there is a need to invest in staff training and continuously update information on the websites. It is important to address the lack of information on the needs and expectations of disabled individuals.

Keywords: accessible tourism; protected natural areas; Lazio; tourism; disability

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MDPI and ACS Style

Pasca, M.G.; Elmo, G.C.; Arcese, G.; Cappelletti, G.M.; Martucci, O. Accessible Tourism in Protected Natural Areas: An Empirical Study in the Lazio Region. Sustainability 2022, 14, 1736. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14031736

AMA Style

Pasca MG, Elmo GC, Arcese G, Cappelletti GM, Martucci O. Accessible Tourism in Protected Natural Areas: An Empirical Study in the Lazio Region. Sustainability. 2022; 14(3):1736. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14031736

Chicago/Turabian Style

Pasca, Maria Giovina, Grazia Chiara Elmo, Gabriella Arcese, Giulio Mario Cappelletti, and Olimpia Martucci. 2022. "Accessible Tourism in Protected Natural Areas: An Empirical Study in the Lazio Region" Sustainability 14, no. 3: 1736. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14031736

APA Style

Pasca, M. G., Elmo, G. C., Arcese, G., Cappelletti, G. M., & Martucci, O. (2022). Accessible Tourism in Protected Natural Areas: An Empirical Study in the Lazio Region. Sustainability, 14(3), 1736. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14031736

Note that from the first issue of 2016, this journal uses article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.

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Accessible Tourism in Protected Natural Areas: An Empirical Study in the Lazio Region

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