Comparing the Attitude Patterns of Men and Women in Planning and Developing Clean and Inexpensive Coastal Cycling Tourism (Case Study of Babolsar)

In traditional societies, gender roles are not notable, whereas gender relations play a significant role in planning and developing tourism. Gender relations give identity to people and set their power and participation in environmental and socio-cultural affairs. All types of tourism, including cycling tourism, play roles in distributing power, resources, participation, and support among the members of society, particularly women and youths. Babolsar city has a coastline of 27 km, which makes it the lengthiest swimming beach in Mazandaran province, visited by various tourists. Should the standards improve, the city’s coastline could attract bicycle tourists and even hold cycling races on a national level. This study compared the attitude patterns of men and women to develop cycling tourism. It also discussed the motivational factors affecting women. Two hundred questionnaires were randomly distributed among tourists on the beaches of Babolsar city. Data were analyzed by T-test and linear regression in SPSS. The results showed that women, similar to men, had a high tendency to use bicycles in a suitable environment. They also asked to establish standard infrastructures to improve their skills. Among the motivational factors in women’s views, the pro-cycling attitudes and perceived cycling ease had the highest impact on developing cycling tourism in Babolsar.