Perceptions of Residents Towards The Impacts of Tourism in the Küre Mountains National Park, Turkey
Asst. Prof. Dr. Nuray TÜRKER, Asst. Prof. Dr. Sevgi ÖZTÜRK

Abstract
Recognizing the importance of tourism in rural areas of developing countries, this paper aims to identify the perceptions of host communities, living in the boundaries of the Küre Mountains National Park (KMNP), towards tourism development. Küre Mountains is a PAN Parks certified area and has been involved with tourism since 2000. A survey approach was used to collect data from residents of KMNP. The research was conducted in three towns (Pınarbaşı, Azdavay and Şenpazar)located in the buffer zone of KMNP. A two-page questionnaire was conducted, along with structured interviews with 207 residents, local authorities, and members of NGOs between January-March, 2011. Two main conclusions can be reached from the research: first, residents of KMNP had neutral or somewhat positive perceptions towards tourism. Second, the location of the residents affected their perceived impacts on tourism, with the residents living in Pınarbaşı perceiving higher positive impacts of tourism compared to residents of Azdavay and Şenpazar.

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