The use is mostly for non-commercial, subsistence purposes and forests have not contributed significantly either as a source of employment or as a source for economic activity. The national tourism strategy recognizes Georgia's natural heritage as one of the key assets for tourism development. In addition, based on a combination of field studies tracking tourist statistics in both protected areas and perspective nature-based tourist areas confi m that Georgia has substantial natural resources and the capacity to develop nature-based tourism. It should be mentioned that the number of visits to the protected areas of Georgia increased about 60 times from 2007 to 2013.