Impact of London residents’ sociodemographic characteristics on the motives for visiting national parks

The establishment of national parks is motivated by the preservation of natural values and resources or, more precisely, landscape and biodiversity, as well as satisfying scientific, educational, health and recreational, tourism, cultural and other needs. They have two often conflicting purposes: to protect important natural and cultural resources and to offer the possibility to use these areas as well as to enjoy them. People love to travel to protected natural areas just because on a relatively small but representative territory they can see a large number of plant and animal species, as well as participate in recreational activities in a pristine environment. The purpose of this study was to identify the motives and constraints for visiting national parks in relation to age, education level and employment status. The research was conducted among the London residents who are potential visitors of national parks in England. A total of 107 respondents were questioned through an online survey. The results obtained in this study showed that there are differences in motives and constraints in relation to sociodemographic characteristics of the respondents. The results of this study could direct the management of national parks to focus more on identifying and meeting the needs of potential visitors because of the increasing popularity of ecotourism.