Geomythology, a new approach in the development of valley Geomythotourism case: Akhlamd Valley

Subject Areas : Geography and Tourism Planning

masoomeh tavangar ¹ , narges tanhaei ² , alan forghani ³

1 - head of management tourism department
2 - ferdowsi uni of mashhad
3 - University of South Australia (UniSA), Adelaide, Australia & Faculty of Science & Technology University of Canberra (UC), Canberra, Australia

Received: 2021-02-20 Accepted : 2021-10-15 Published : 2023-03-21

Keywords: village, Akhlamd, Geomythology, Geomythotourism,

Abstract :

Geomythology is the study of the relationship between geomorphological features and oral culture of geographical areas. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between Geomythology and the attraction of Geotourists in the Akhlamd Valley and introduce it as a new tourist destination. Akhlamad is one of the most important recreational destinations in Khorasan Razavi province. However, due to the existence of specific geomorphological features, myths are rooted in the popular culture of the region, which is unknown to the general public and can pave the way for the development of Geomythotourism in this area. The present research is of survey and applied type and combined analysis has been used to obtain the answers to the research questions. Information required by field methods; Observations, interviews and questionnaires were collected and analyzed using SPSS software. The research results show that most of Akhlamad tourists live in Khorasan Razavi. The most important motivation for their travel was visiting and tourism, and people who considered Geomythological phenomena important and attractive had more money to travel to Akhlamd.