Economic valuation and estimation of willingness to pay for Baghestan recreational and tourist village in Karaj using Contingent Valuation method (CVM)

Gardening and tourist village of Baghestan, due to its variety of attractions, is one of the most important tourist parks in the Alborz province. Therefore, studying recreational value can be effective in predicting the needs and shortages and development of tourism in this village. This study determines the recreational value of Baghestan village and the willingness to pay visitors by using a conditional valuation method and a two-dimensional dual choice questionnaire. The statistical population of this study consisted of 150 village visitors who were selected based on available sampling method. Logit model was used to investigate the effect of explanatory variables on the rate of visitors' willingness to pay. The results showed 73.3% of the respondents were willing to pay for recreational use of the village and average willingness to pay for recreational value of this village was calculated to be 16914.4 Rials per visit. Its total annual recreational value was estimated to be 11,840,080,000 Rials. The variables of the proposed rate of payment and the cost of transportation each time, had a negative effect on the variables of park quality, marital status, duration of study per week, environmental trends and gender, had a positive effect on willingness to pay. The results show that people are aware of the importance of forest parks and natural spaces and there is a significant willingness to pay which can help officials in planning and managing the village.