Visitor profile, perceptions and expectations in forests from a gradient of increasing urbanisation in central Belgium

The forest complex of Heverlee-Meerdaal, which consists of two forest parts, is located on a gradient from a rural region to an expanding urban area, Its vicinity to the city of Leuven and the adjacent conurbation leads to intense recreational use by the inhabitants. By means of counts an interpretation on congestion and on spreading of visitors in time and space in the area was made. On the basis of these counts questionnaires were carried out in the forest throughout the whole year and among all activity groups. In this context, little is known in depth about the interaction between the structural characteristics of the recreation site and recreation patterns in particular. The questionnaires deal with socio-demographical characteristics of the visitors, preferences and perceptions of the respective activity groups and their interpretation of the forest area concerning structure and infrastructure. According to this study, the geographical distribution of the visitors in the forest is highly determined by the position of the forest along a gradient relative to the conurbation. A total of 69% of the visitors lives within a radius of 10 km and almost 38% originates from Leuven itself. Therefore, it can be considered to be an urban forest. The preferred activity is walking, followed successively by biking and jogging. Most of the people visit the forest on their own. Visit frequency and length are negatively correlated and strongly determined by the distance covered from the residence to the forest. Preferences and perceptions are influenced not only by social characteristics but also by the recreation activities and their specific interests and demands. The overall quality of the visit to the forest complex is evaluated very positive. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.