THE ECONOMIC VALUE OF RECREATIONAL BENEFIT OF AIK NYET NATURE TOURISM, KPH RINJANI BARAT: An Application of the Travel Cost Methods

Good knowledge on economic value of a particular tourist destination is primarily fundamental for effective management policy formulation. In 2015, Aik Nyet Nature Tourism, which covers an area of approximately 9.08 hectare, is one of tourist destinations planned to receive donation from Provincial Government of West Nusa Tenggara (Pemprov NTB) for its improvement and development of facilities, infrastructures as well as capacity building for people around the tourism location. Using travel cost method, this study estimates consumers' surplus and economic benefits of recreational value in Aik Nyet before the realization of donation from Pemprov NTB. Consumers' surplus per individual per visit is estimated using data collected from survey. Data were collected by means of self-administered, paper-based questionnaire completed on-site during weekend and national holiday of August to October 2015. Using poisson regression, the travel costs (transportation cost, consumption cost, and location paid entrance fee) were considered in the study to explain the frequency of individual's visit to the tourist location. Results of the study show that that consumer surplus obtained by visitors is Rp2,557.158 per visit per individual and the economic recreational value before the realization of the government's financial support is approximately Rp9,333,627.70 per year.