DOI: 10.11118/978-80-7701-025-2-0314

TOURISTS' PERCEPTION OF THE DANGERS AFFECTING THE GEOMORPHOLOGICAL HERITAGE OF THE COZIA MASSIF (SOUTHERN CARPATHIANS)

Constantin-Răzvan Oprea¹, Adriana-Bianca Ovreiu¹, Laura Comănescu¹, Roxana Cuculici¹, Alexandru Nedelea¹, Bogdan Olariu¹

¹ Faculty of Geography, University of Bucharest, Nicolae Balcescu 1, 010041, Bucharest, Romania

Geomorphological heritage is a fundamental component of natural heritage, which includes landforms, landform systems, and processes important to understanding Earth's history. When landforms are scientifically representative and develop a special value (aesthetic, cultural, or economic) through human perception, they are considered geomorphosites. The perspective of the communities that use and interpret the relief is critical in terms of natural and anthropogenic hazards that affect geomorphosites and that, over time, can lead to the loss or decrease of their value. Our approach aims to assess how tourists perceive and understand the hazards affecting geomorphological sites. To this end, in 2022-2023, a questionnaire with 15 closed-ended questions was applied to a sample of tourists as homogeneous as possible. The results reflect a poor understanding and training of tourists in the sense of awareness of the importance and vulnerability of geomorphosites, as well as the need to promote the geotourism potential of the massif.

Keywords: geomorphological heritage, geomorphosite, hazard, questionnaire

pages: 314-319, Published: 2025, online: 2025