Ecotourism site suitability evaluation between Emamzadeh Hashem and Rudbar through the AHP and Fuzzy Logic Techniques in GIS

Gilan province is one of the northern provinces of Iran, which due to its unique geographical position, hosts many tourists per annum. The main purpose of the present research is to assess potential areas of ecotourism through a case study in the northern freeway of Iran, between Emamzadeh Hashem and Rudbar.
Material and

In this research, ArcGIS 10 was performed to assess potential areas of ecotourism through the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and index of potential spatial techniques. Furthermore, thematic maps with specific scales in relation to the ecological resources of the study area were prepared to create a spatial database. Afterward the data were analyzed by a systematic method.

Findings indicated that the best score is assigned to the situation with the lowest risk of floods and landslides, the least difficulty and cost of access to the road, the optimal earth slope, the maximum average rainfall, adjacency with freshwater availability such as rivers and lakes as well as access to the potable water, ease of access to the surrounding villages, and has the highest equilibrium temperature and the lowest evapotranspiration.
Discussion and

Based on the classification and network magnification of images, index values were calculated for each cell, so that those cells with a cultivar above 0.1115 were extracted. These cells are located at the top of the study area which is situated adjacent to the Emamzadeh Hashem included the Ghazian, Liafo, Sheikh Ali Toseh, Mirza Golband, and Radar Pashteh villages.