Speaker
Description
Tourism plays a vital role in rural revitalization efforts, yet disparities in its popularity persist, even in areas supported by targeted policies. The rise of digital platforms has transformed destinations into tradeable assets, commodifying culture, heritage, and visitor experiences. While globalization and overtourism have intensified challenges, digital technologies also offer new avenues for addressing these disparities. By integrating spatial data and adaptive governance, this study investigates the potential of sustainable tourism development to address disparities in tourism heat, cultural commodification, and policy-resource misalignment.
This study investigates the spatial characteristics of these disparities within the peri-urban areas of Shanghai, focusing on the misalignment between policy support and tourism heat. It aims to address the following questions: What are the spatial characteristics of peri-urban destinations’ tourism hot spots and cold spots in Shanghai? How does policy support influence these differences? What are the potential impacts of social media-driven tourism hotspots on local identity and cultural preservation?
This study adopts a multi-step methodology integrating policy analysis, user-generated content (UGC) data, and geospatial techniques. Data sources include Points of Interest (POI) data from Amap, official tourism policy documents, vector data delineating Shanghai's rural boundaries, and UGC from online travel platforms such as Dianping and Ctrip. A tourism popularity evaluation index is constructed using POI density, review counts, and average ratings, analyzed through GIS methods such as kernel density estimation and hotspot analysis. The study identifies mismatches between tourism popularity and planning policies supporting rural village development, exploring underlying causes. Furthermore, it examines the role of digital platforms in shaping peri-urban destinations’ external image and local identity, with a focus on themes like natural landscapes and camping. This external branding, driven by digital platforms, often diverges from local residents’ perceptions. Using word frequency analysis, the research illustrates the role of digitalization in amplifying disparities in tourism heat and local identity, providing insights for more balanced and inclusive tourism development strategies.
Preliminary findings reveal that tourism heat disparities stem from issues in tourism planning policy, such as the unequal distribution of policy resources, varying local government execution capabilities, and misaligned policy frameworks that fail to account for regional differences. Interestingly, several non-policy-supported villages exhibit higher tourism popularity than policy-supported counterparts, highlighting the significant role of digital platforms in amplifying these disparities and suggesting a need for more adaptable policies that integrate digital tools. These results emphasize the importance of tailoring policy measures to specific local contexts, promoting equitable resource allocation, and improving governance at regional and local levels, rather than relying on one-size-fits-all solutions.
This research offers theoretical insights and practical strategies for refining tourism planning policies to achieve balanced and sustainable development, focusing on bridging disparities in peri-urban areas of megacities’ tourism development. Key recommendations include developing adaptive tourism planning policies that incorporate digital platform data and spatial analysis, employing spatial data-driven decision-making approaches, and enhancing cross-regional collaboration. By addressing these disparities, the study aims to foster sustainable and regenerative tourism practices, ensuring equitable resource allocation and cultural preservation. Ultimately, it provides a replicable model for advancing responsible tourism development in Shanghai and similar global contexts.
References
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| Keywords | Peri-urban areas; Policy support; Digital platforms; Spatial analysis; Tourism planning |
|---|---|
| Best Congress Paper Award | Yes |
