Destination management of protected areas in Budapest

Abstract

Around 5% of the territory of Budapest is under protection by the Duna-Ipoly National Park, and 1,6% is protected by the Budapest Municipality. These areas are managed and protected in different ways by Budapest Municipality and by the Duna-Ipoly National
Park and this situation is not advantageous for the protected areas. It would be beneficial to manage these areas only by the Duna-Ipoly National Park, because the national park has the necessary capability, expertise and international tender opportunities. Thanks to this, the protected areas would be developed and managed conserving biodiversity, while creating touristic attractions. To prove these hypotheses data were collected about the incomes, tenders and developments of the protected areas by the Duna-Ipoly National Park and Budapest Municipality. The analysis of data proved that only the National Park has income from the management of the protected areas and through the tenders. While Budapest Municipality has financial resources only from the central budget, the National Park has won tenders for around 860, 000 Euros recently. Additionally, national parks also collect entrance fees or fees for guided tours from visitors. Investigating the situation of the protected areas it is clear that only the areas managed by the Duna-Ipoly National Park are profitable and thus they are more sustainable than other areas.