EVALUATION OF THE EFFECTS OF SNOW FESTIVALS ON WINTER TOURISM: THE EXAMPLE OF THE EASTERN BLACK SEA

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Winter tourism is one type of tourism that is developing ever-increasingly in the world and in our country. Winter tourism events such as snow festivals are organized for the development of winter tourism. Activities such as snow festivals, which have increased in our country in recent years, contribute to the revitalization of winter tourism activities, increasing the number of tourists and branding the destinations. In addition, snow festivals draw attention as activities that have significant effects on the development of tourism activities in the winter period, when the mobility in tourism decreases compared to other seasons and likewise in the spread of tourism throughout the year. Snow festivals have been increasing in recent years in the Eastern Black Sea region, which we have chosen as a research area. It is expected that the snow festivals, which are expected to make the above-mentioned positive contributions, to contribute to tourism activities which are concentrated only in the summer season to be carried out in the winter season especially in the highlands in the region and for the tourism pressure possible to spread over a longer period of time and field and that for the plateaus that were previously abandoned in the winter season to continue to be alive in this season as well. The main purpose of our study is to evaluate the effects of snow festivals on winter tourism in the Eastern Black Sea Region. Case study (case study) among the qualitative research methods was used in the research. In our researches, it is understood that the increasing number of snow festivals in the Eastern Black Sea Region contribute to the revival of winter tourism, however, due to some deficiencies in some fields such as infrastructure, organization, access, promotion, etc.; the current potential cannot be exploited at the desired level. We believe that by eliminating all these shortcomings, the real potential of snow festivals can be revealed and it can make a significant contribution to the development of winter tourism in the region.

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Snow , Festival , Eastern Black Sea , Tourism

International Journal of Geography and Geography Education

243

International Journal of Geography and Geography Education