LANDSCAPE CHARACTERS FOR TOURISM ROUTES: CRITERIA TO ATTRACT SPECIAL INTEREST TOURISTS TO THE KUALA SELANGOR – SABAK BERNAM ROUTE

Tourism routes connect the city to the rural areas by linking a variety of activities and attractions. Tourism activities stimulate entrepreneurial opportunities through the development of ancillary products and services. The planning of resources and attractions along the route can be integrated to support the development of a region, conservation and rejuvenation of cultural and natural resources. An attractive route can attract special interest tourists whose travel motivation is to experience the rural environment. This paper examined the landscape characters found along the rural route of Kuala Selangor to Sabak Bernam in Selangor, Malaysia. Based on 250 survey questionnaires among locals and tourists, this study evaluated the importance of nine criteria of the rural tourism route. The findings suggested that the intangible criteria are pertinent to support the tangible criteria. This paper concludes by recommending ways to improve the landscape characters of the route to enrich the tourist experience.