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The Travel Cost Approach to Recreation Demand Modeling: An Introduction

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Book cover Measuring Water Quality Benefits

Part of the book series: International Series in Economic Modeling ((INSEM,volume 3))

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Abstract

The travel cost approach offers some of the most widely used demand models for valuing recreation sites. Originally suggested in a letter from Harold Hotelling to the director of the National Park Service, the approach’s basic idea—i.e., that the distances recreationists travel to the sites they visit indicate the implicit prices they are willing to pay for using these sites—has spawned an extensive literature.* Drawing on this literature, this chapter introduces and develops our indirect approach for measuring households’ valuation of water quality changes. In particular, we generalize the travel cost model to reflect the role of recreation sites’ characteristics on households’ demands for the services of these sites.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA

    V. Kerry Smith

  2. Research Triangle Institute, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA

    William H. Desvousges

Authors
  1. V. Kerry Smith
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  2. William H. Desvousges
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© 1986 Kluwer-Nijhoff Publishing, Boston

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Smith, V.K., Desvousges, W.H. (1986). The Travel Cost Approach to Recreation Demand Modeling: An Introduction. In: Measuring Water Quality Benefits. International Series in Economic Modeling, vol 3. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-4223-3_7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-4223-3_7

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-010-8374-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-009-4223-3

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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