The Proximity in Pricing Udawalawa National Park: The Perspective of Local Tourists

Abstract

Tourism Industry has turned its course with the sustainable goals. It has necessitated the identification of means of improvements within the industry and preservation. Udawalawa National Park has been identified as the second largest revenue generator for the public sector in the conserved forests and national wildlife parks category. The study selected 45 of random local tourists to identify the willingness to pay for the national park. The results showed that the mean willingness to pay of the local tourists was Rs. 184.78 which suggested an underpricing of the site. The estimated mean price has the ability to increase the revenue generation of the site by 216 percent. This increment would surpass the revenue generation of Yala National Park and reduce the two-fold difference among them. The estimated price has the ability of imposing restrictions to the entrance of the site and would aid in identifying strategies for sustainable development and preservation of it.