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THE NEW EVALUATION PROPOSAL OF TOURIST-RECREATIONAL

ATTRACTIVENESS OF WATER RESERVOIRS

Conference Paper · August 2016

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 Section Economics and Tourism

THE NEW EVALUATION PROPOSAL OF TOURIST-RECREATIONAL

ATTRACTIVENESS OF WATER RESERVOIRS

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mariusz Rzetala 1, 2

1
University of Silesia, Poland
2
Jan Dlugosz University, Poland

ABSTRACT
Some water reservoirs are considered to be attractive for the development of recreation
and rest. They make indirect or direct point of tourist migrations and their importance is
equally often investigated in categories of sightseeing. Recreational use of reservoir
retention is most of all conditioned by the character of its use (e.g. aesthetics of reser-
voir and its neighbourhood, i.e. the quality state of water, access to shores and water
surface) and connected with it legal limitations. Tourist and recreational range of reser-
voir edges also depends on the occurrence of other values (natural, cultural, specialist)
in the neighbourhood as well as on the state of tourist management (transport infrastruc-
ture, tourist-recreational facilities, gastronomic base, accommodation i.e. guest houses,
tent sites and camping sites, shelters, hostels, pensions, hotels and motels). Based on the
evaluation of tourist-recreational attractiveness of water reservoirs the following
categories were established: lack of attractiveness or low attractiveness of water reser-
voirs, small attractiveness of water reservoirs, high attractiveness of water bodies.
Keywords: tourism, recreation, lake, water reservoir, tourist management, tourist-
recreational attractiveness

INTRODUCTION
Inland water bodies (lakes and anthropogenic water bodies) fulfil various socio-
economic functions, e.g. related to flood prevention, transportation, water supply and
generating energy [1]. Together with their shores they are also attractive tourist, recrea-
tion and leisure locations.
The recreational significance of water bodies can be considered in terms of possibilities
for organising leisure activities and engaging in sports: sailing (e.g. yachting, windsurf-
ing, ice yachting), canoeing, fishing, powerboating, etc. Inland water bodies are inter-
mediate or final destinations for tourist migrations, and their significance is frequently
considered in terms of sightseeing, landscape architecture, environmental protection,
etc. The development of tourism and recreation around water bodies stimulates the es-
tablishment of catering and accommodation, tourist facilities and those related to tourist
traffic as well as transport infrastructure.
These natural and other values as well as tourist and transport infrastructure deter-
mine the attractiveness of natural and artificial water bodies for tourism and recrea-
tion purposes. These facilities often form the core of the tourism product and the
basis for tourist offerings. A review of literature on the subject demonstrates that
there are many scenarios for the optimal use of natural and artificial lakes worldwide

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3rd International Multidisciplinary Scientific Conferences on Social Sciences & Arts SGEM 2016

[2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7], [8], [9]. These scenarios are focused on recreational and
leisure use of bodies of water together with their shores and concern the organisation
of various forms of tourism.
There is no uniform standard for assessing the attractiveness and tourism and recreation
potential of inland bodies of water, which could also guide the development of their
shores. This is a basic premise for the development of an algorithm to assess the poten-
tial or actual attractiveness of water bodies for tourist and recreational purposes, which
would then determine the direction for the development of their shores and their poten-
tial functions. Attempts to develop such a method for assessing the tourist and recrea-
tional attractiveness of bodies of water were undertaken in general [10], regional [11],
[12] and local [13], [14] terms. The presented assessment framework was developed on
the basis of studies conducted in southern Poland and in the north-eastern Czech Re-
public [12] and supplemented in subsequent years.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

As concerns the historical, present or prospective attractiveness for tourism and rec-
reation purposes as a factor guiding the development of shores and the functions of the
water body, a simple algorithm has been proposed that takes into account many fea-
tures, each of which is assigned a certain score.

n
TA = ∑ C
i =1
where:
TA – numerical measure of attractiveness for tourism and recreation purposes (0–30 points);
C – the characteristics that are scored;
n – the number of characteristics that are scored.

The proposed procedure for scoring the tourism and recreational attractiveness of water
bodies involves assigning numerical values to the characteristics being scored: from
zero where the characteristic in question is absent or is of negative significance up to the
maximum score when the characteristic in question is present and of positive signifi-
cance. The procedure involves 28 characteristics classified into eight main groups,
which include [12]:
a) aesthetic values of the water body and its vicinity:
− water quality (0–2 points);
− aesthetic values of the vicinity (0–2 points);
b) transport infrastructure:
− transport accessibility (0–1 points);
− parking possibilities (0–1 points);
c) public safety (0–1 points);
d) natural (0–1 points) and cultural (0–1 points) values in the vicinity of the shore;
e) the accessibility of shores and the body of water:
− the accessibility of shores (0–1 points);
− the accessibility and size of the water surface (0–1 points);
− the seasonal stability of water surface (0–1 points);

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 Section Economics and Tourism

f) tourist and recreational infrastructure including specialist aspects:

− beaches (0–1 points);
− cultural programme (0–1 points);
− equipment for team games (0–1 points);
− water and land (hiking, skiing, walking and horse riding) tourist trails, nature
trails (0–1 points);
− sailing (0–1 points);
− permanent and temporary bathing beaches (0–1 points);
− diving (0–1 points);
− canoeing (0–1 points);
− powerboating (0–1 points);
− fishing (0–1 points);
g) commercial and catering services, i.e. shops (0–1 points), bars (0–1 points), restau-
rants (0–1 points);
h) accommodation facilities, i.e. private lodgings (0–1 points), campsites (0–1 points),
hostels (0–1 points), B&Bs (0–1 points), hotels and motels (0–1 points).
The result of the assessment is a numerical value constituting the total of all compo-
nents, which should be interpreted in terms of the tourist and recreational attractiveness
of water bodies as well as the quality of individual components.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The application of the algorithm proposed enables the identification of current situation
in terms of the tourist and recreational attractiveness of the water bodies examined. The
system proposed may also be used to assess tourist and recreational significance in the
past as well as the potential (prospective) significance in the future. The algorithm pro-
posed can be successfully used to assess the tourist and recreational significance of dif-
ferent sectors of single large bodies of water. The result of the assessment procedure in
this case illustrates the differences in the recreational and tourist attractiveness of a sin-
gle water body or within a group of water bodies (Fig. 1).
When expressed in numerical terms, the results allow water bodies to be ranked accord-
ing to their quality classification and divided into three groups, i.e. unattractive or at-
tractive to a limited extent (0–10 points), moderately attractive (10-20 points) and
highly attractive (20–30 points). The unattractive or attractive to a limited extent cate-
gory usually includes water bodies that fulfil functions other than tourism and recreation
ones (and could be liquidated if they did not have other important natural and socio-
economic functions). The main feature of water bodies belonging to the moderately
attractive category in terms of tourism and recreation is the possibility of their potential
use for these purposes in the future (usually subject to the completion of reclamation or
protection measures and improvement in the tourist facilities present). The management
of the water bodies included in the highly attractive group should involve the improve-
ment of all qualities together with the elimination of negative characteristics and the
application of protective measures in relation to the water body and its vicinity.
The proposed algorithm for scoring the tourist and recreational significance of water
bodies allows the detailed analysis of individual characteristics and components of this
assessment: aesthetic values of the water body and its surroundings, transport infrastruc-

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3rd International Multidisciplinary Scientific Conferences on Social Sciences & Arts SGEM 2016

ture, public safety, tourist values, the accessibility of the shores and water, tourist and
recreational facilities and their specialist values, services, catering and accommodation
facilities.

Figure 1. A sample assessment of the tourist and recreational attractiveness of water

bodies in the Upper Silesia–Ostrava region (after: [12]; simplified): I – location of the
study area: a – water bodies selected for the study (1 – Pawniowice, 2 – Dzierżno Małe,
3 – Dzierżno Duże, 4 – Czechowice, 5 – Chechło, 6 – Kozłowa Góra, 7 – Rogoźnik, 8 –
Przeczyce, 9 – Kuźnica Warężyńska, 10 – Łosień, 11 – Pogoria I, 12 – Pogoria II, 13 –
Pogoria III, 14 – Żabie Doły, 15 – Wesołe Miasteczko, 16 – Przystań – WPKiW, 17 –
Łąka, Milicyjny, Kajakowy, 18 – Morawa, 19 – Stawiki, 20 – Hubertus, 21 – Słupna, 22
– Sosina, 23 – Dziećkowice, 24 – Paprocany, 25 – Łąka, 26 – Goczałkowice, 27 – Śmi-
eszek, 28 – Knurów-Szczygłowice, 29 – Rybnicki, 30 – Łężczok, 31 – Buków, 32 –
Dolní Benešov, 33 – Nezmar - Dolní Benešov, 34 – Hlučin, 35 – Bohumin Vrbice, 36 –
Poodřii, 37 – Žermanice, 38 – Těrlicko), b – important cities, c – state border; II – as-
sessment of the tourist and recreational attractiveness of bodies of water: A − unattrac-
tive or attractive to a limited extent, B − moderately attractive, C − highly attractive.

Aesthetic values of the water body and of its vicinity are among the most important cri-
teria when assessing the tourist and recreational significance of water bodies, and are
assigned the largest weight within the entire classification framework. They comprise
water quality assessment (0–2 points) and aesthetic values of the vicinity of the water
body (0–2 points). When scoring the quality of water in terms of its usefulness for tour-
ism and recreation, uniform criteria for determining the ecological status of lentic wa-
ters in accordance with applicable laws should be used. Another solution is to use con-
ventional, semi-quantitative quality assessment systems.

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 Section Economics and Tourism

Photo 1. Algal blooms are a sign of considerable water eutrophication and an example
of a threat to the recreational and tourist use of the water body – Taihu Lake on the Cen-
tral Plain of China (Photo: M. Rzętała).

The assessment of transport infrastructure in terms of the tourist and recreational impor-
tance of water bodies involves determining the transport accessibility of the water body
(0–1 points) and the possibility of parking various vehicles (0–1 points) in its close vi-
cinity. Different means of transport should be taken into account, e.g. road, rail, inland
waterways and air transport, with special means of transport treated as a mode of using
the tourist facilities available.
Public safety institutions (0–1 points) should be construed as the presence of policing
services and their ability to intervene in case of emergency as well as the functioning of
security systems and the policing services’ ability to integrate their interventions.
When assessing the tourist and recreational significance of water bodies, one should
take into account the presence of tourist attractions in the immediate vicinity of the wa-
ter body because they arouse the tourists’ interest. These include natural (0–1 points)
and cultural (0–1 points) values in the vicinity of the shore of the water body in ques-
tion. Natural values have origins that are related to natural processes and cultural values
are products of human activity.
The accessibility of shores and the body of water is of key importance for their tourist
and recreational uses. The accessibility of shores (0–1 points) should be interpreted not
only as the absence of any obstacles (e.g. terrain, legal, administrative, ownership) to

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3rd International Multidisciplinary Scientific Conferences on Social Sciences & Arts SGEM 2016

their use. The accessibility of water surface and its size (0–1 points) should be construed
in a similar manner and also assessed specifically from the point of view of the water
body’s suitability for engaging in various forms of tourism and recreation (e.g. canoe-
ing, fishing, sailing, swimming). The seasonal stability of water surface (0–1 points)
should be determined on the basis of the analysis of water level fluctuations during dif-
ferent seasons [15], depending on the intensity of tourist and recreational use of bodies
of water. This is an important factor owing to the shoreline changes related to fluctua-
tions in water levels, which may result in difficulties in the use of infrastructure and
tourist and recreational equipment (Photo 2). Seasonal assessment should be carried out
where water bodies are used both in summer and in winter.

Photo 2. “Launching and water hazards exist, including submerged objects due to fluc-
tuating water levels!” and “Low water launch at own risk” – warnings about obstacles to
operating the port basin (harbour) on the Great Salt Lake in the U.S. as a result of fluc-
tuations in water level (Photo: M. Rzętała).

The presence of tourism and recreational equipment, including specialist equipment, is

an important aspect from the point of view of assessing water bodies in tourism and
recreational terms, and includes the availability of the following: beaches (0–1 points),
cultural programmes (0–1 points), equipment for team games (0–1 points), permanent
and temporary bathing beaches (0–1 points), water as well as land (hiking, skiing, walk-
ing and horse riding) trails and nature trails (0–1 points). Another advantage is the pres-

778
 Section Economics and Tourism

ence of opportunities to engage in sailing (0–1 points), diving (0–1 points), canoeing
(0–1 points), powerboating (0–1 points) and fishing (0–1 points).
The availability of services and catering should be understood as the availability of fa-
cilities that are diverse in quantitative and qualitative terms. Where such facilities meet
different expectations, they generate tourist and leisure traveller traffic to local destina-
tions. The assessment therefore includes shops (0–1 points), bars (0–1 points) and res-
taurants (0–1 points).
Accommodation facilities should vary in quantitative and qualitative terms, which is
important given the different requirements of tourists and leisure travellers. The possible
facilities included in the assessment are private lodgings (0–1 points), campsites (0–1
points), hostels (0–1 points), B&Bs (0–1 points), hotels and motels (0–1 points).

CONCLUSIONS
When expressed in numerical terms, the results obtained using the algorithm proposed
allow water bodies to be ranked according to their quality classification and divided into
three groups, i.e. unattractive or attractive to a limited extent (0–10 points), moderately
attractive (10-20 points) and highly attractive (20–30 points).
The application of the algorithm proposed enables the identification of current situation
in terms of the tourist and recreational attractiveness of water bodies.
One advantage of the algorithm is the fact that it can be used for any past period for the
water body in question (the condition being the availability of all data required for the
assessment algorithm).
The algorithm can be used in the analysis of potential tourist and recreational attractive-
ness of bodies of water (based on simulation data and assumptions about the future).

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