Perceptions of COVID-19's impact on outdoor Tourism in the Peneda-Gerês National Park

Abstract

At a time when the World is affected by a pandemic and protection measures include social distancing, sanitation and disinfection of spaces and equipment, the tourism sector is exposed to numerous obstacles. Insecurity caused by the pandemic has affected tourism numbers around the world, thus making the need to assess the effective impact of Covid-19 on the tourism sector, on the evolution of outdoor tourism, as well as the specific impact of pandemic in the Peneda-Gerês National Park (PGNP). For the preparation of this study, a qualitative methodology will be adopted, using interviews with entities related to the PGNP to collect information on the perception of the impact of the pandemic in the study area. Thus, the results from the present study estimate an increase in the number of visitors to the Park in the summer months. There was a high number of new visitors, especially Portuguese, which would be expected in view of the limitations in traveling, caused by the pandemic. On the other hand, the number of outdoor tourists may have been affected due to the cancellation of sporting events, especially in the low season months, contributing to the increase in seasonality.