Examining the product and process of scenic beauty evaluations using moment-to-moment data and GIS: The case of Savannah, GA

Growing out of a recent debate on aesthetics, and in particular scenic beauty, we added the term 'process' to our conceptualization of scenic beauty so it is broader and more dynamic than other traditional definitions. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the product (content of the environment such as tree characteristics) and process (spatial and temporal patterns of change perceived such as frequency, maximum, minimum, and average quality) of scenic beauty tourist evaluations to better understand what and how it is experienced in real-time. Five city street corridors in Savannah, GA, were video recorded with a roadside view during the spring, summer, and winter (2008-2009). Visitors (N = 130) were asked to evaluate the scenic beauty of a video by turning a hand-held dial (Perceptual Analyzer) and completing a questionnaire. Moment-to-moment data, post-video evaluations, and GIS tree data were used to develop a scenic beauty map, evaluation timelines for each season, and a model predicting willingness-to-pay for a trolley tour. The specific tourism product-based characteristics of the urban forest (tree groupings, height, diameter or DBH, age, condition, and species) that contribute to scenic beauty support what is reported in the literature, thus further validating the mapping of real-time data. Both quality (i.e., average scenic beauty) and quantity (i.e., positive changes in scenic beauty per minute) related measures were both significant process-based predictors of tourists' willingness-to-pay for scenic beauty. The only product-based variable that was significant was an overall measure of quantity of visitor experiences (i.e., eventful measure). The quality of scenic beauty may be only part of the story.