Because of their ecological value, protected areas form some of the world’s greatest eco-tourism attractions. Hence, the Protected Area managers are faced with the challenge of controlling and limiting the impacts of unfettered nature tourism while at the same time striving for development of eco-tourism as a compatible economic development option. The manual seeks to address the limited understanding of business issues and incomplete understanding of management mechanisms that are necessary to ensure the sustainability of tourism in protected areas.

The Business of Ecotourism Development and Management is aimed at providing orientation and guidance on both key conservation management and key business development strategies. This volume may be usefully consulted to review options for mitigating tourism threats that may already exist at a site. Part I of this volume gives an introduction to the critical elements of ecotourism management planning including zoning, visitor impact monitoring, visitor site design and management, income generation mechanisms, infrastructure and visitor guidelines, and naturalist guide systems. Part II outlines the business planning process and how to promote viable business partnerships with communities or private tourism operators.