Assessing willingness to pay dynamics at a World Heritage Site of India: a stated preference approach

Manas National Park (MNP) is a World Heritage Site in Assam, India. It holds immense conservational significance due to its ecological biodiversity. Despite accomplishing notable conservation success, the lack of adequate and timely funds is a constant burden for the management. Therefore, this study aims to assess the willingness to pay (WTP) of MNP visitors and identify the important determinants and attributes so that the key action areas could be identified for better tourism management and improved earnings. Based on the contingent valuation method, the study employed the payment card approach on 178 park visitors to elicit their WTP responses. Although tourism in MNP is still at an early stage, it was observed that the visitors place considerable value to the preservation of the park. Loyalty, environmental disposition, and concern for MNP were observed to be strong positive determinants of visitors' WTP. In addition, infrastructure, services/facilities, and cost emerged as the crucial attributes of the park.