RECREATION VALUE OF SANDY BEACH ESTIMATED FROM WEB QUESTIONNAIRES ON BEACH VISIT

Abstract

 Two types of transportation surveys were conducted using web questionnaires to determine the accessibility of sandy beaches to coastal users. Based on the survey results, recreation values of sandy beaches were evaluated using the travel cost method. A local survey was conducted on visitors at four crowded beaches, while a nationwide survey was conducted on visitors to all beaches around Japan, and the result was analyzed by prefecture unit. The recreation values estimated for Shirarahama, Kariyushi and Emerald beaches coincided well with those estimated based on the results of the nationwide survey. However, the recreation value estimated for the Katase-Nishihama-Kugenuma beach was smaller than the value estimated from the nationwide survey. The results of the local and nationwide surveys showed that while the railway was the preferred mode to access Katase-Nishihama-Kugenuma beach, most of the coastal users preferred cars to travel to other beaches. The difference in cost of travel to Katase-Nishihama-Kugenuma and other beaches was because of the specific choice of the transportation to Katase-Nishihama-Kugenuma beach. The findings that the nationwide survey is applicable to beaches where coastal users arrive by cars. The local survey results also revealed that sea coastal users visited with no particular purpose to beaches. Although most coastal users visited to have a walk, sea bathing was not a primary purpose of visit. These results suggest the importance of conducting surveys for evaluation of the number of visitors to assess the recreation value of sandy beaches accurately. Based on these results, few suggestions for utilizing web surveys and methods comparing travel costs are discussed.