the territory, with a greater impact on the local eco-
nomy than conventional tourism, especially in rural
areas. Broadening the areas that could benefit from
tourist activity will create new employment, help to
maintain the local population and reduce the territo-
rial imbalances generated by coastal or urban tourism.
The potential of nature tourism for the sustaina-
ble development of rural areas is especially relevant
in the province of Cádiz, given the areas exceptional
natural conditions for this type of tourism. Aware of
this potential, the Sustainable Development Plans
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of the Natural Parks of the province, acting as the
principal instrument of socio-economic revitalisation
for the natural parks and surrounding areas, propose
among their objectives the creation of a tourist offe-
ring based on natural spaces, cultural heritage and
traditional practices, allowing for the diversification
and reorientation of the provinces popular sun and
beach tourism, while ensuring its sustainability and
adapting supply and demand to the environment. To
do this, two strategic lines are proposed.
On one side, it is intended to promote nature tou-
OTWO 09 / APRIL 2020
rism as an additional part of mass holiday tourism
(mainly coastal and urban) by attracting it to activi-
ties in natural areas of the province and proposing
them as an enrichment and complementary part of
the tourists stay. These will generally be short-term
activities, adapted to a non-specialised public and
appropriate to seasonal and weather conditions. On
the other side, as we have previously seen, the natu-
ral areas of the province of Cádiz have the capability
of developing a distinctive and independent tourist
offering, that is not contingent upon coastal tourism
OTWO 09 / APRIL 2020
as the main proportion of the stay. This means en-
visaging the province of Cádiz as an area that has
the capability of becoming a nature tourism desti-
nation with national and international significance,
attracting visitors whose motivation is specifically to
carry out activities in natural areas. Ornithological
tourism, nature photography, bicycle touring, hiking
great routes or various nature sports are clear areas
of nature tourism that are clearly growing and that
should be built upon as a discerning characteristic of
the province of Cádiz as a tourist destination.
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