Spatial Patterns of Second Home Development as Part of Rural Landscapes. A Case Study of Apuseni Nature Park

During the last decades, against the backdrop of radical social and economic restructuring, the rural environment has changed fundamentally, arising new social and economic dynamics and cultural realities. The second homes development has significantly contributed to this process and created major challenges for the need to protect the rural character. Therefore, with the purpose of integrated and sustainable spatial planning, a detailed acquaintance of second homes’ spatial differentiation as part of contemporary rural landscapes, is a core prerequisite. This study aims to determine the second homes spatial patterns in relation to the main characteristics of the local environment, and to create a practical cornerstone for stakeholders concerned with integrated planning of second home tourism. In order to achieve these goals, this research used five major datasets related to land cover, elevation, climate, management system for protected areas and other social aspects (e.g. tourism, native settlements). Twenty-three variables were defined using GIS and subsequently assigned to grid cells with a size of 1.5 km2. To reduce the dimensionality of spatial datasets, Principal Components Analysis (PCA) was performed, resulting seven components that explained 77.2% of the variation. The PCA score was the subject of k-means cluster analysis that revealed nineteen landscape types. Finally, the spatial location of second homes is overlaid with the identified rural landscapes. This approach shows plenty of hidden nuances of second home tourism and facilitates its integration in both spatial, socio-cultural, and administrative dimensions.