Examining the perception of tourists of the alternative tourism potential of Sinop

Tourism is one of the most important sectors and most effective tools of the 20th century in regional development. One of the methods applied to diversify and develop tourism is the improvement of alternative tourism opportunities. Today, in order to respond to the expectations and needs of the people with higher educational, financial and social status and to have a higher share of the tourism market by undergoing changes in services, tourism supplier sare shifting to alternative tourism. Alternative tourism contributes to regional economic development by preventing a single-type tourism market, enriching tourism diversity and creating new opportunities. This study was conducted with the aim of the determining how Sinop's potential of alternative tourism is perceived by the domestic tourist. A field study that was aimed at the domestic tourists who visited Sinop was performed in accordance with the study's aim. Survey form was used as data acquisition method, 421 surveys were conducted to research population who were domestic tourists in Sinop. The data acquired from the survey forms was analyzedwith SPSS 21.0 Packed Program. According to the findings deducted from the data analysis; Sinop has domestic tourism potential, nature and culture tourism is applicable types of tourism in the area, however, it couldn't reach its potential due to factors such as insufficient accommodation insufficient infrastructure and superstructure and lack of publicity.