Leisure and tourism in the Portuguese historical gardens: the owners/managers perception

Abstract

Leisure and tourism are intrinsically linked to the gardens. These are a kind of heritage that combines culture and nature, being known that tourism is increasingly anchored in the cultural and natural dimension of the territories. New or renewed uses and consumption put uncovered, in turn, new or renovated spaces. The gardens in general, and the historical ones in particular, constitute one of those spaces that have emerged as strategic resources of the territories, making it one of the protagonists of contemporary tourism. In order to meet the current ludic and touristic dynamics of the Portuguese historic gardens and see how is outlined the future of the tourism sector, a survey questionnaire was applied to the owners/managers of about 100 national historic gardens. We present here the main results obtained referring to one of the sections of this survey. The analysis revealed that the gardens hold an unquestionable intrinsic value, are important elements for the territories and societies and, despite the constraints that must be overcomed by concerted action between various actors, national historic gardens constitute attractions that can integrate a competitive and important tourism supply, benefiting from a wide margin of progression.