Theoretical and Practical Approach of Connecting the Ecotourist Offer of the Special Nature Reserve of Zasavica (Serbia) with the Tourist Offer of the Surrounding Village Settlements

Abstract

Pannonian basin was once covered by vast alluvial plains with patches of marsh, swamp, pan and prairie. With Holocene changes in climate, marshes have withdrawn and in the last couple hundreds of years they were pushed out by developing agricultural areas. The Nature Reserve Zasavica keeps the remains of former marshes and swamps on the territory of Vojvodina. One of the ways for providing necessary financial support for the reserve protection is development of ecotourist activities in the Zasavica region. Its biodiversity and numerous endangered species (Umbra krameri, Nymphaca alba, Numphar luteum, Stratiotes aloides, Acorus calamus, Buteo butes, Haliateetus albicilla, Lutra lutra, Castor fiber...) could be the basis for tourist valorization of the Reserve. It is also necessary to conduct analyses of the impact of tourism on endangered species and confirm sustainability of those activities. The lack of accommodation capacities could be supplemented by the development of the tourist offer of the nearby countryside. This way the village tourism would enrich its offer with visits to the nature reserve. Such tourism activities would contribute towards the development of local communities and the improvement of the standard of living. Since the villages and the reserve are already territorially intertwined, their further tourist cooperation would lead to knowledge transfer and local people would have a better understanding of the protection of the Special Nature Reserve Zasavica.

Keywords

• Zasavica
• ekotourism
• rural tourism
• Vojvodina
• Serbia.