Sustainability of tourism initiatives in national parks on the tri-border of Slovakia-Poland-Ukraine as a stimulus for tourists' interest

Initiatives for sustainable destination management have long been a hot topic of the day. The tourism industry is no exception to the setting of strategies and solutions. In terms of ensuring long-term sustainability, many destinations are turning towards setting rules and limits that will be in line with nature conservation. Appropriately applied strategies eliminate the currently widespread phenomenon of over-tourism and, on the other hand, help travellers and local residents get the most out of the destination while minimizing damage to its natural resources. The paper provides a perspective on the implementation of sustainable initiatives in national parks. Using the example of visitors, he analytically evaluates the perception of the approaches to sustainable initiatives for the development of national parks in the tri-bordered area of Slovakia-Poland-Ukraine (Poloniny National Park, Bieszczady National Park, Uzhanskyi National Park) as a potential stimulus for increasing the visitors' rate and the repeated visits of the parks. Using the questionnaire methods survey, it evaluates the attitudes of tourists/visitors in three national parks and compares them with each other in terms of determinable principles and activities that can be implemented in the parks, as well as their motivation to visit again under the conditions of applying sustainability strategies. The results of the research in all three parks point to the fact that these national parks need more significant settings regarding the principles of sustainability, as well as educating the public about their benefits.