Analyzing the Roles of Environmental Resources in the Development of Urban Tourism in Khansar City

A B S T R A C T
This article aimed to analyze the role of environmental resources in motivating tourists to come to the city of Khansar. Khansar is located in the west of Isfahan province. It has a population of 22000 people. The research uses a descriptive-analytical method based on documentary and survey data. Environmental resources that are supposed to be effective in attracting tourists are identified through studying many books and documents as well as consulting meetings with the director and the experts of the Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Office, and a few others. The evaluation of the motivation level of any selected resources was accomplished by 350 sample tourists. They are selected among the 4000 tourists who visit the area annually. The data was collected using a questionnaire that contained 37 items. The respondent must sign any of the items on the 5-point Likert scale. To analyze the data, it is implied the Friedman Test and the One Sample T-Test. Findings show that 15 out of 37 resources are evaluated as "effective resources," 13 resources as "relatively effective," and 9 resources as "non-effective." Also, the results indicated that items in the two categories of economic and cultural are attractive in absorbing tourists, and the others are in a moderate situation. In conclusion, despite what happened in previous decades, the nature and natural environment of Khansar would not be so effective in absorbing tourists. Climate change and droughts have largely eliminated the attraction of the physical environment for tourists.
Extended Abstract
Introduction
Tourism has a high position in the models of destination development and modern competition. These models consider environmental resources an integral part of the process. Environmental resources of tourism are a multi-dimensional concept that includes not only the economic goods of tourism, such as overnight accommodation and entertainment but also the attractions of the environment, which are a source for tourism development and a main attraction for potential tourism demand. Some places have capacities and capabilities to attract tourists. These places may become tourist-friendly due to their tangible and intangible cultural heritage, charming landscapes, pleasant weather, attractive nature, magnificent shopping centers, festivals, special rituals, religious sanctity, etc. Khansar, the area of this research, is famous as a recreational travel destination. The attractiveness of this city for tourists is due to its natural environment on one hand, which is characterized by beautiful nature on the edge of the Central Mountains of Iran, gardens, and springs; on the other hand, the tangible and intangible heritage of this city, and its rich culture. The purpose of this research is to identify and evaluate those environmental elements that are attractive to visitors. The research seeks to inform tourists about the various types of attractions in Khansar city and the surrounding environment and evaluate the degree of importance they attach to these attractions in search of answers to the following questions:
1.What components of environmental resources have been involved in motivating tourists to choose Khansar as a tourist destination?

How have these components, individually and in the five categories of natural and environmental, economic, social, institutional, cultural, and services, motivated tourists to choose Khansar as a tourist destination?

 
Methodology
The components of tourism environmental resources are identified by studying the research literature and implying consultation meetings with 15 experts. The indicators are categorized into 5 sets as natural and environmental, cultural, social-institutional, economic, and services. A survey method using a questionnaire is used to evaluate the indicators. The questionnaire consisted of 37 items. In each item, the respondent was asked to answer to what extent each mentioned place or phenomenon has attractions for traveling to Khansar. The respondent must evaluate the items in one of the ranges from none to a lot. The sample respondents consist of 350 people, including 192 men and 158 women, selected among the 4000 tourists. The obtained data was entered into the SPSS software and analyzed using Friedman's Test and the One Sample T-Test.
 
Results and discussion
Among the total 37 indicators of environmental tourism resources of Khwansar city, 15 sites are "influential," 13 sites are "relatively effective," and 9 sites are "without impact" on attracting tourists. Among the influential indicators, only three, Damaneh Cave, Baghkal Dam, and Honey Park, are in the "natural" category. "Trade," "investment search," and "souvenirs and handicrafts" are three influential indicators in the "economic" category and have the ranks of 2, 4, and 15, respectively. All four economic indicators except "collecting medicinal plants" are evaluated as "influential." Four indicators are in the "cultural" category as "Historical monuments and cultural heritage" (rank 5), "Pilgrimage to shrines" (rank 6), "Visiting Baba Turk's tomb" (Rank 8), and "Main Mosque" (rank 10). From the indicators of the "services" category, two indicators of "toilets" (rank 9) and " the roads toward Khansar" (rank 11) were evaluated as "influential" indicators. "Golestan-Koh" and "green tunnel-like streets" are two "natural" category indicators that are evaluated as "relatively effective." "Collecting medicinal plants" is another "relatively effective" indicator in the "economic" category. The only indicator from the "cultural" category that is evaluated as "relatively effective" is the "Architectural and heritage works of the villages near the city of Khansar." Four "relatively effective" indicators from ranks 24 to 27 are from the "social-institutional" category and include: "traditional rituals," "hospitality," "local foods," and "order in the city." "Quality of hotels and accommodation centers," "Car parking in the streets and tourist places," "Access to fuel stations," "Car repair shops and car service centers," "Restaurant," and finally, "Internet and telecommunications services" are five indicators from the "service" category that are evaluated as "relatively effective." Out of the total of 9 indicators that were "ineffective" in the motivation to travel to Khansar, 7 indicators are in the "natural" category and 2 indicators are in the "social-institutional" category. The "Economic" and "Cultural" indicators are attractive to tourists, and the indicators of the other three categories are moderately attractive. Also, the indicators of none of the categories are very attractive.
 
Conclusions
According to the findings of the research, the following measures are suggested for the development of Khansar tourism:

Appropriate proper regulations to preserve natural resources and implementing the regulations strictly;
Investing in implementing new techniques to exploit water resources efficiently to revive and expand gardens and green landscapes;
Controlling tourists to prevent damage to the environment;
Investing to build all kinds of accommodation centers and services that are suitable for different social and income groups;
Research is needed to determine a suitable tourism brand and develop a strategic plan for Khansar tourism development.

 
Funding
There is no funding support.
 
Authors’ Contribution
Authors contributed equally to the conceptualization and writing of the article. All of the authors approved thecontent of the manuscript and agreed on all aspects of the work declaration of competing interest none.
 
Conflict of Interest
Authors declared no conflict of interest.
 
Acknowledgments
We are grateful to all the scientific consultants of this paper.