Seasonal variations in tourist satisfaction is an important issue for the sustainable management of national parks worldwide. Visitors should have high-quality experiences in both the high season and the off-season. This research investigated visitor satisfaction patterns and determinants in Banff National Park in different seasons. The study was conducted through a face-to-face questionnaire survey that collected visitor demographic, expectation and satisfaction data in July 2019 (high season) and December 2019 (off-season) in Banff National Park. The data analyses were based on a sample of 741 respondents and were processed using principal component analysis, correlation analysis and logistic regression models for different seasons. There were significant differences in visitor satisfaction levels and their determinants in different seasons. The quality of the park’s natural characteristics and the park’s activities were the most important determinant of visitor satisfaction in the high season and off-season, respectively. The correlation between visitor satisfaction and expectations in the high season was generally negative, whereas all correlations in the off-season were positive. The results fill a knowledge gap by examining the seasonal differences in visitor experience and their determinants in the national park, and by building a bridge between visitor experience and tourism seasonality. The findings may assist both practitioners and scholars in understanding visitor expectations and satisfaction in different seasons. They may assist in the prioritization and effective management of the park to optimize the visitor experience in both seasons and achieve tourism sustainability.

Perceived occurrences of soundscape reflect cognitive responses to perceived soundscapes. This research focuses on the relationship between perceived occurrences and pleasantness of soundscape in urban forests, and models these parameters. Soundscape information was gathered at 60 observation sites in urban forests, including perceived occurrences of soundscape (POS), pleasantness of perceived soundscape in urban forests (PSUF), and equivalent continuous A-weighted sound pressure level (L_Aeq). Twelve trained participants were exposed to the soundscape at each site for five minutes and filled out a questionnaire about POS and PSUF. The weight-ratio of perceived occurrences of soundscape (WPOS) was obtained from the POS. Pearson’s correlation coefficients and Stevens’ power law were conducted to test the applicability of the perceived occurrences of soundscape in psychophysical models. Results show that there is an interaction between the WPOS and PSUF in urban forests, and that psychophysical models are able to assess pleasantness of perceived soundscapes in urban forests. Findings show that pleasantness trends of geophony and biophony in broad-leaved forests and those in coniferous forests are opposite when the L_Aeq is increasing. Furthermore, by combining the WPOS, PSUF, and L_Aeq, the models were able to link the PSUF of geophony, biophony, anthrophony, and total soundscape in urban forests. Overall, results revealed that perceived occurrences of soundscape play a key role in linking the pleasantness of geophony, biophony, and anthrophony in urban forests.

Outdoor recreation in national parks has significantly driven the growth of tourism globally. Research on tourism management in national parks has grown due to increasing scholarly interest in the field. This paper presents a bibliometric review of the development, aspects, and applications of national park tourism management. Data were collected from the Web of Science core collection database, and a total of 3438 research articles from 1980 to 2022 were selected and analyzed using VOSViewer (Version 1.6.19). We here analyze and visualize the co-occurrence of research keywords with temporal overlay and cluster analysis. We also present a content analysis and conceptual and management frameworks by examining multiple aspects of tourism management to offer detail aspect-based management implications. These can assist various park stakeholders, scholars, and associated collaborative efforts with the issue of how to best manage national park tourism in the context of an uncertain future and increasing conflicts of interests.