Introduction

Geotourism is a new term for a relatively old idea, and as such there still remain conflicting definitions. On the one hand, the relatively broad definition 'Tourism that sustains or enhances the geographic character of the place being visited its environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage and well-being of its residents' encompasses a large range of activities, and the 'geo' part of the definition refers to geography (Stueve et al., 2002). On the other hand, the geologist's definition of geotourism is 'Tourism in geological landscapes', as coined by the Geological Curator's Group and the Geoconservation Commission of the Geological Society (London), where the 'geo' clearly refers to geology (Robinson, 1998). The National Geographic Traveler and the Travel Industry Association of America performed a survey of potential vacationers in 2003, and found that some 55 million Americans were willing to make an extra effort to partake in geotourism and were thus classified as geotourists, with various subcategories depending upon interest (Stueve et al., 2002). Therefore, geotourism in any form is a very popular idea.

Although less than ten years old as a proper term, geotourism has been practised in the United States for more than a century. The first National Park was established by an Act of Congress in 1872 to preserve areas of natural wonder and beauty 'for the benefit and enjoyment of the people' (see Harris et al., 1997). The National Park Service was created by Congress in 1916, and included the 40 parks and...