Wetland Tourism Case Studies

Wetland tourism has benefits both locally and nationally for people and wildlife – benefits such as stronger economies, sustainable livelihoods, healthy people and thriving ecosystems.  The 14 case studies below, 13 of which are Ramsar Sites, have been selected to cover different wetland types around the world and to examine the diversity in the scale of tourism, the management processes in place, the many challenges encountered and, wherever possible, the management solutions employed.

The full texts of the case studies (links are in the right column) include considerable detail on the scale of tourism and how it is being managed.

Case Studies:

	Country, Site Name	Tourism	Ramsar Site No.	Size (ha.)	Link to Case Study
	Argentina Iberá Marshes	~ 17,100 visitors/year (in the Ramsar Site only) Boating, kayaking, hiking, nature trails, wildlife watching, horse riding	1162	1,300,000 ha Ramsar Site (24,550 ha)	Read More
	Australia Kakadu National Park	~ 175,000 – 225,000 visitors/year interpretative walks, indigenous art tours, boat cruises, guided bushwalks	204	1,979,766 ha	Read More
	Brazil Abrohlos Marine National Park	~ 5,000 visitors/year SCUBA diving, snorkelling, wildlife watching, nature trails	1902	91,300 ha	Read More
	Colombia Humedal la Conejera	~ 16,000 visitors/year Nature trails, guided walks, relaxation, ecological restoration	--	59 ha.	Read More
	Estonia Soomaa	~ 45,000 visitors/year Board walks, canoeing, guided walks, wildlife watching,  cultural experience	912	39,639 ha	Read More
	India Tsomoriri	~ 20,000- visitors/year Wildlife watching, trekking, jeep safaris, home stays, cultural experience	1213	12,000 ha	Read More
	Kenya Lake Nakuru	~ 300,000 visitors/year Wildlife watching, sightseeing tours, self-guided vehicle tours, trail walks	476	18,800 ha	Read More
	Philippines Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park	SCUBA diving, boating, bird watching, snorkeling	1010	96,828 ha	Read More
	Romania Danube Delta	~ 50,000-73,000 visitors/year Floating hotels, boating, wildlife viewing, fishing, photo safaris, cultural experience	521	580,000 ha Ramsar Site  (647,000 ha)	Read More
	Seychelles Port Launay Coastal Wetlands	~125,000 visitors/year to Seychelles, 4,000 to Port Launay Wildlife viewing, beaches, canoeing	1432	121 ha	Read More
	Slovenia Skocjan Caves	~ 95,000 – 100,000 visitors/year Cycling tours, educational trails, guided cave tours, walking	991	41,300 ha Ramsar Site (650 ha)	Read More
	Tunisia Lake Ichkeul	~ 50,000 visitors/year Nature trails, guided excursions, birdwatching, caving, hiking, horse and camel trekking	213	12,600 ha	Read More
	USA Everglades	~ 1,000,000 visitors/year Canoeing, boat tours, elevated board walks, hiking, camping, wildlife watching, fishing, bicycling, houseboats	374	621,000 ha Ramsar Site (566,143 ha)	Read More
	Vietnam Ba-Be Lake	~24,000 visitors/year Boat tours, homestays, guided tours, cultural experience, birdwatching	1938	10,480 ha	Read More

More information:

>> Tourism and Wetlands
>> Tourism and the Convention
>> Ramsar and UNWTO Publication
>> Useful Materials


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Go to the Ramsar Community page here to read more on sustainable tourism in wetlands and take a virtual tour by clicking on 14 case studies showcasing sustainable tourism in wetlands (13 of which are Ramsar Sites). By showing the beauty of wetlands you help to communicate their value. Supported by the Danone Fund for Water.


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