Alpine destinations face the challenge of managing an increasingly high level of demand and supply in the mountain hiking sector, coupled with a changing target audience. Based on data from recent hiking studies, membership statistics from Alpine clubs, and mountain accident statistics, it can be assumed that more people from urban areas with little experience are hiking on trails that are too challenging for them. In addition, consumer expectations regarding tourism services, infrastructure, and mountain rescue have risen.
Key tasks of destination management include the ongoing development of high-quality hiking offerings and the management of visitors. The trail signage system—as part of the trail infrastructure and thus the hiking experience—serves to guide visitors in a way that is tailored to specific target groups. A good wayfinding system helps to enhance hikers’ safety and the quality of their experience.
How can the wayfinding process of hikers in alpine destinations be characterized? Which factors influence this process, and what differences can be observed within the target group?
Research Objectives:
“Wayfinding describes a person’s ability—both cognitive and behavioral—to reach a spatial destination. This ability, which is based on three distinct processes—decision making, decision execution, and information processing—is a spatial problem-solving ability.” (Passini, 1984, p. 154)
According to Passini’s definition, the theoretical concept of “wayfinding” encompasses two dimensions: cognitive ability and behavioral ability. The performance aspect of “decision making” falls under the category of “cognitive ability.” This involves making various decisions related to routefinding. These decisions are made prior to the actual hike (“pre-travel”). These decisions are influenced by individual, social, and environmental factors and result in the formulation of criteria for route selection (Dalton et al., 2019; Münzer & Hölscher, 2011; Schamel, 2017; Siegel & White, 1975; Xia, 2007). Once the route-finding strategy has been developed, it must then be implemented during the actual hike (“en-route”) (“decision executing”). This performance falls under the category of “behavioral ability” and manifests itself in the actual spatiotemporal behavior of hikers in the alpine destination (“revealed preferences”).
To answer the research questions formulated, a combination of methods—including a survey and GPS tracking—is planned.
The first part of the study focuses on the planning and decision-making process involved in route-finding (“cognitive ability”). A survey will be used to identify the individual factors listed in the model prior to the actual hike and to categorize the target group into different activity types.
The second part will examine the specific spatiotemporal behavior of hikers (“behavioral ability”). GPS tracking will be used to record indicators such as locations visited, routes taken, distances, duration, etc. An additional survey is intended to provide insights into the difficulties hikers perceive when navigating.
The goal is to compare the two areas—“cognitive ability” and “behavioral ability”—in order to identify discrepancies between route planning and actual route finding.