Com ou sem emoção?: o passeio de buggy como atrativo turístico do Rio Grande do Norte

Abstract

The main theme of this article is adventure tourism with the buggy ride in the state of Rio Grande do Norte (RN) as the object of study. The study aimed to analyze how the buggy ride emerged and developed as a tourist attraction in Rio Grande do Norte, identifying its characteristics and potential through the professionals working in the area. For this, it was necessary the following: a) describe the historical aspects of the evolution of the buggy activity as transportation for tours, through interviews with the pioneer buggies; b) Identify how the buggy ride is inserted, in the perspective of being a tourist activity and if there is a similar attraction due to the perception of buggy professionals; and c) present the trends and perspectives of the buggy ride in the buggy view as transportation and tourist attraction. The theoretical framework addressed themes related to the segmantation of Tourism in Brazil, Sun and Sea Tourism and Adventure Tourism, using authors such as Machado (2016), Costa (2016), Ignarra (2013), Uvinha (2008), Barreto (2006) and Brazil (2006). For methodological purposes, the research is characterized as exploratory, descriptive, making use of structured interviews with professionals who carry out buggy rides in RN, most of them for more than 20 years. As a result, it is possible to point out positive views regarding the buggy ride in the state, aspects of the activity's evolution, such as the creation of laws. On the whole, therefore, the buggy's activity in the RN it is not only important for the state and tourism, but for a whole network that is benefited through it.