Valuing Rural Recreation Benefits: An Empirical Comparison of Two Approaches

Two methodologies for valuing non‐market benefits (contingent valuation and the travel cost method) are briefly described. Both are then applied to the problem of valuing non‐market recreation benefits derived by visitors to a part of the Queen Elizabeth Forest Park in Central Scotland. Results, in terms of consumer surplus estimates, are presented for each method, and problem areas found in applying the two methodologies are pointed out.