Ecotourism Destinations in Nueva Ecija: Concepts and Practices Toward Tourism Marketing and Sustainability

Abstract

In the realm of postpandemic perspectives, tourism was awakened to see that atop economic viability is resiliency. Shift in the demand to visit ecotourism destinations became a valuable opportunity to the local community to capitalize on natural resources as primary precursor for livelihood, substantiating their communal role as bailiffs in the conservation of protected landscapes and mitigators of the negative tourism implications. As tourism initiates in rethinking sustainability and inclusivity, the postpandemic paradigm in destination planning became anew. Aside from being an agritourism destination, Nueva Ecija has been promoted as an emerging ecotourism destination. Various literature has evaluated local ecotourism destinations in the Philippines, yet few literature examined the potential of Nueva Ecija. The emerging popularity of the province's ecotourism postpandemic beckons the inflow of tourists compelling for an in-place policy toward sustainability. The study aims to underscore the destination branding of Nueva Ecija as a tourist destination using a strategic framework derived from ecotourism concepts and best practices. Qualitative data from various tourism stakeholders were collected, and internal and external factors were analyzed. Results of the study may serve as a foundation toward a unified framework to assess and strengthen ecotourism destinations toward sustainability and tourism destination resiliency.

Citation

Castillo, C.B. and Bautista, M.J.D. (2024), "Ecotourism Destinations in Nueva Ecija: Concepts and Practices Toward Tourism Marketing and Sustainability", Rivera, J.P.R., Gutierrez, E.L.M. and Roxas, F.M.Y. (Ed.) Revisiting Sustainable Tourism in the Philippines (New Perspectives in Tourism and Hospitality Management), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 219-236. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-83753-678-820241012