Investigation of Outdoor Recreation Needs and Preferences of Visitors in Sorkhe Hesar Forest Park and Its Comparison with Sisangan Forest Park

Nowadays, assessment of the outdoor recreation demand in forest parks is very important to prepare the successful outdoor recreation plans and to schedule the facilities development in these plans. Recognition of visitor’s economic- social needs is essential to estimate outdoor recreation demand, because visitor’s socio-economic conditions have the great effect on mall selection to use of it. In this study outdoor recreation demand of Sorkhe Hesar forest park in east of Tehran was evaluated by interviewing and completing of questionnaire in the spring. Obtained results of this study were compared with the results of another study done in Sisangan forest park to investigate visitor’s outdoor recreation demand changes during thirty years. Comparison of outdoor recreation demand and investigation of visitor’s needs in in-city forest parks (Sorkhe Hesar) and out-city forest parks (Sisangan) showed that visitor’s outdoor recreation demand has not changed during thirty years. In addition, visitor’s outdoor recreation demand is similar in in-city forest parks (Sorkhe Hesar) and out-city forest parks (Sisangan) (except demands that depend on visitor’s distance) and visitor’s major purpose is rest in the healthy environment and inspiration in the healthy air. Finally we suggest that outdoor recreation planners consider the visitor's demand and tendency to create and develop the forest parks.