Using a VGI and GIS-Based Multicriteria Approach for Assessing the Potential of Rural Tourism in Extremadura (Spain)

Abstract

Extremadura (Spain), being one of the less-developed EU regions, is also eligible for European funds, including those related with the development of tourism activities in rural areas. To assess the spatial distribution of rural tourism potential (RTP), a methodological approach was followed by combining the synergetic use of geographic information systems (GIS) and the analytical hierarchical process (AHP). For the evaluation model, six factors were examined and hierarchized by a panel of eighteen experts: tourism accommodation offer, activities in natural areas, gastronomic offer, cultural activities, bath offer in natural environments, and activities in active tourism. These factors were then decomposed into thirty-two evaluation criteria and the relative importance of their weights was estimated using pairwise judgments. Using publicly available data and volunteered geographic information (VGI) platforms, the related spatial and non-spatial data were collected, collated, and standardized, employing appropriate tools developed with open-source GIS software. The results, represented by a series of intensity maps, indicate the RTP scores, highlight the strengths and weaknesses in each county, and could serve as a planning tool for public and/or private investments.

Residents’ Attitudes towards Sustainable Tourism Development in a Historical-Cultural Village: Influence of Perceived Impacts, Sense of Place and Tourism Development Potential

“…Wilson suggested ten factors that are most important for successful tourism development including a complete tourism package, good community leadership, support and participation of local government, sufficient funds for tourism development, strategic planning, and so on [65]. González-Ramiro assessed the potential of rural tourism using a method combining with geographic information systems (GIS) software and the analytical hierarchical process (AHP), by some indices including accommodation offer, activities, natural environments, and so on [66]. Mazanec defined and measured the competitiveness of a tourism destination based on heritage and culture, infrastructure, communication facilities, social competitiveness, environmental preservation, tourism price, openness, and education [67].…”

Land Valuation Sustainable Model of Urban Planning Development: A Case Study in Badajoz, Spain

“…It consists in the weighting of the criteria and alternatives through the so-called paired comparison matrix, which is a judgments matrix that is released by previously selected experts [67][68][69]. This method is widely used for the evaluation of all types of projects in numerous fields and disciplines [70][71][72].…”

Risk Premium Assessment for the Sustainable Valuation of Urban Development Land: Evidence from Spain

“…Through these methods, the different risk levels that the project can have were determined. At present, this methodology has been successfully used in various disciplines, such as education, economy, resource allocation, environmental applications, and also urban planning [40][41][42][43][44]. AHP's potential is strong thanks to its multiple applications.…”