Estimation of the Recreational Value of Nour Forest Park Using Individual's Willingness to Pay

The aim of this study was to estimate recreational value of Nour Forest Park and measure of visitor’s willingness to pay for recreational benefits of the concerned park based on contingent valuation method and double-bounded dichotomous choice questionnaire. To do this, 353 questionnaires were completed in the park. To investigate the effect of explanatory variables like age and gender on individual’s willingness to pay, logit model was used and its parameters were estimated based on maximum likelihood method. The results showed that 80.2 percent of visitors had willingness to pay for recreational use of Nour Forest Park. The mean of willingness to pay for recreational value of the concern park was dollar 0.42 per visit and the recreational annual value was estimated $/ha 114.5. The results revealed that, forest parks had considerable recreational values that this may help the decision makers and social and economic managers, in the preservation planning and sustainable utilization of natural resources.