• Journal of Korean Society of Rural Planning
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.49-61
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• 2016

This study examined the effectiveness of and satisfaction of visitors with the Environmental Improvement Project on national parks' trail entry areas. A survey was conducted to improve the proposal framework based on the data. Data for the study were obtained from 6400 respondents who used 28 national park offices at 32 national park trail entry areas. The field research was collected in 3200 surveys, divided between pre- and post-implementation of the Environmental Improvement Project. The study variables consisted of socio-demographics, visitors' perceptions on the environmental improvement of trail entries, effects of the environmental improvement, and visitor satisfaction. Several important results were found. First, the environment of trail entries has a significant impact on the formation of images and user satisfaction of national parks. Second, the influence of the trail entry improvement showed that 71.8% of visitors rated the trail entry as environmentally friendly after the Environmental Improvement Project, compared to 48.5% of visitors rated the trail entry as environmentally friendly before the Environmental Improvement Project. The findings indicated that a top priority of environmental improvement of the trail entries needs to be the installation of convenience facilities such as rest areas, restrooms, and direction boards (pre: 34.5%, post: 32.6%). Third, functionality and the other nine variables were shown to enhance the effect of the environmental improvement of the trail entries at the 1% statistical significance level. Finally, results indicated that the overall satisfaction of the visitors with the park was significantly higher after the environmental improvement (t-value=25.741, p=.000), showing the satisfaction score was higher after the environmental improvement (pre: 3.51, post: 4.12), with a statistically significant difference at the 1 % level. This study helps to understand trail entries, which have influenced the image of the national park and satisfaction. These findings can be utilized to manage and design a national park as a public space.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.145-151
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to understand users' attitudes for trail structure conditions in Dobong district, Bukhansan National Park, Korea. For this purpose, the research conducted a respondent's-personal entry-method based questionnaire survey on 250 visitors using inquiry routes in Dobong areas in Bukhansan National Park in July, 2007. The survey result showed that the 6 types of pedestrian trail structures were relatively in better shape in its quality and quantity while the responses for 3 types of structures, such as wood deck, wood railings, and stone paving, were positive in terms of harmony with landscape, preservation of resources, and user convenience. In conclusion, it is considered to be essential to bring in nature-friendly materials for walking facilities in National Parks and also necessary to consider the visual effect arising from the harmony with landscape together with the functions of conservation of resources and inquiry convenience.