Daminda Sumanapala

Murdoch University

Sri Lankan National Parks are highly popular among international and local visitors, as they offer close-up encounters with large animal species. Yala National Park is one of the top five parks in the country attracting larger crowds than any other parks especially during the holiday season. Most visitors flock to the park to observe the highly sou...

Global demand for SCUBA diving activities in coastal areas continues to grow. Academic research has acknowledged that SCUBA diving can have ecological impacts. To understand the current state of knowledge this study applied the systematic quantitative literature review method (SQLR) to determine what evidence is available on ecological impacts from...

Although Sri Lanka is known for its many geodiverse attractions, it has not fully recognized and capitalized on its potential to promote geotourism. This study evaluates the potential of two geotourism case study areas, Ussangoda and the Kudawella blowhole, in the southern part of the island which is well frequented by tourists. We provide a bluepr...

The COVID-19 pandemic constitutes one of the greatest challenges in the history of the tourism industry. Travel restrictions imposed in many countries to manage the global spread and community transmission allow to study the environmental effects on tourism destinations. Here we investigate the case of wildlife tourism in Sri Lanka, a country that...

Rainforests provide exceptional spaces for nature-based tourism activities attracting large numbers of visitors. Simultaneously, tourism activities may create environmental, social and economic impacts that require management in order to conserve sensitive rainforest environments. Rainforest tourism constitutes a travel sector that receives growing...

For nearly a century, researchers have observed the ecological impacts arising from increased numbers of visitors using natural areas for tourism and recreational activities. This study reviews the recreational ecology literature as it is relevant to Sri Lanka providing a rare linkage between global research and local applications of this research....

Purpose-This paper demonstrates that the recommendations regarding visitor satisfaction and revisit intention reported in the international literature apply to the management of ecolodges in Sri Lanka. Design/Methodology/Approach-Data from 362 self-report questionnaires completed by visitors between January 2014 and January 2015 were analysed by st...

Geotourism is an emerging sub-sector of nature-based tourism that attracts a growing number of tourists to geoparks worldwide. Among these, Asian geoparks have become an attractive destination for visitors to experience geological landscapes. To date, there are limited studies available on the environmental impacts of geotourism in Asian geoparks....

Recreational ecology is an internationally evolving research field addressing the high demand for nature-based tourism and recreation, and its environmental impacts. This review aimed to analyze the research effort of recreational ecology studies published in four renowned journals in the field, the Journal of Sustainable Tourism, Tourism Managemen...

Most research papers and surveys related to Sri Lankan Parks reveal that among visitors, both international and local, demand for parks is high, the main reason being the wish to view wildlife in its natural environment. One result is that it causes several negative impacts on national parks. The study is a systematic review of recent research on w...

As the demand for ecotourism and nature-based tourism increases, eco-lodges are becoming a popular alternative accommodation choice. Consequently, the development of an ecolodge industry has wider implications for countries such as Sri Lanka, especially when considering the country's high potential for ecotourism and the need to provide alternative...

Tourism is one of the largest and fastest growing industries in the world. After 30 years of long debacle, Sri Lanka's tourism sector is now showing signs of robust growth. At present, the tourism sector has emerged as the fourth largest foreign exchange earning of the country's economy. As negative environmental and socio-cultural impacts of mass...

Tourists around the world have become more environmentally conscious, and the demand for green holidays and green accommodation has experienced a rapid growth. In this background, the form of accommodation known as " eco-lodges " have gained a huge popularity, especially among those who are seeking environment friendly wilderness experiences. Exten...

References Ballantine, J.L. (1991). An analysis of the characteristics of a population of Canadian Tourists to Kenya :Waterloo, University of Waterloo. Belize Explorer. (n.d.). Cayo district – Belize and ecotourism. Retrieved February 15, 2004, from http://www.belizex.com/cayo.html Belize Tourism Board. (2003). Belize travel and tourism statistics...

As negative environmental and socio-cultural impacts of mass tourism become more apparent, the appeal of alternative forms of tourism, especially ecotourism, has increased globally. With the growing demand for ecotourism and nature-based tourism, eco-lodges are becoming more popular as an alternative accommodation choice. As such, development of ec...

Tourism is a fast growing sector in the International market, while Ecotourism is the growing sector in sustainable tourism. Most of the tourists visit natural and cultural areas for leisure in a particular destination. Ecotourism also offers educational and new experience to tourist, and it has to be developed and managed in environmentally sensit...