Analysis of Land Use Pattern for Tourism Management using GIS

Research Article- DOI: 10.23953/cloud.ijarsg.495

Abstract

Over the past few decades Sri Lankan tourism has been a story of untapped potential. The responsible parties have been unable to expand the footprint of tourism due to the lack of vision, coordinated planning and strategic commitment to the actions undertaken to accomplish a country's goal. Beyond question, the present tourism industry occupies an integral part of the economy of Sri Lanka. As a result, the negative impact of rapid and uncontrolled tourism development has become an inevitable critical issue. Regarding the indicated facts, this paper offers a remarkable aspect of tourism management defining proper land use patterns via GIS (Geographical Information Systems) for the identified tourism destinations in order to develop the tourism industry further on a both environmentally sustainable and economical platform. The study discusses the capabilities and shortcomings that are possible to encounter, brief description on GIS contribution and also the author's perspective relating to the future tourism strategic plan. Rooted in a GIS based analysis, the author anticipates to design a general framework to evaluate the proper land use systems as well as an infrastructure in effective transformation towards eco-tourism in Welipenna area through Bentota and Meegama river along with novel suggestions in conclusion.

Keywords Eco Tourism; Land Use Planning; Tourism Development; GIS; Management

DOI: https://doi.org/10.23953/cloud.ijarsg.495