A Project for Sustainable Tourism Development for the Cunuyacu Hot Springs Resort
located in Ambato Village, Tungurahua Province was proposed. The resort has natural
hot springs, the infrastructure is damaged, and it does not have the appropriate facilities
to receive tourists. For this study, the tourists who visit the Fauna Production Reserve of
Chimborazo were considered, because the Hot Springs Resort is articulated according to
the activities carried out in this Reserve; 382 surveys were applied. The infrastructure
situation and the architectural drawings design were determined, as a result it was
considered to implement a restaurant, sauna, steam room, and hydromassage which are
the tourist preferences; throughout a market study the trade name for the resort was
proposed as “Termas Volcánicas de Cunuyacu” and the entry fee to the resort was set.
The economic and financial studies indicated that the project is economically viable with
an IRR (Internal Rate of Return) of 21, 16% with funding and 26, 30% without funding,
taking 50% of unsatisfied demand. The project implementation does not aggressively
affect the environment, or the culture of the community, according to the environmental
impact and socioeconomic studies made through the Leopold Matrix. For the hypothesis
verification the logic estimator Chi-square was applied which determined the hypothesis
acceptance. Therefore, the implementation of the Sustainable Tourism Development
Project is recommended, since it improves the quality of life of the community
population and it is economically profitable.