Spatial Structure Characteristics of Tourist Attraction Cooperation Networks in the Yangtze River Delta Based on Tourism Flow

Yuewei Wang,Xinyang Wu,Hang Chen

doi:10.3390/su132112036

Yuewei Wang, Xinyang Wu + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/su132112036

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Abstract

This study aimed to examine the spatial structure of the tourist attraction cooperation network in the Yangtze River Delta, from the perspective of tourist flow. This study conducted spatial and social network analyses of 470 popular tourist attractions in the Yangtze River Delta region of China, accounting for the occurrence and co-occurrence of tourist attraction information in tourist travel notes. The analyzed tourist attractions show an obvious spatial agglomeration effect, including four high-density agglomeration areas and two medium-density agglomeration areas. Degree centrality, closeness centrality, and betweenness centrality were used to examine the tourism function, distribution function, and connection function of nodes in the network; nodes were divided into various types of roles according to their function. There are eight condensed subgroups, but their scales are unbalanced. In these condensed subgroups, several tourist attractions with an intermediate function can be selected as transit and stopover points on tourist routes. This study can contribute to the understanding of tourists’ spatial behavior, clarify the role and status of nodes in the cooperation network of tourist attractions based on tourism flow, and help them to formulate measures for the joint marketing of tourist attractions, and promote the development of tourism in the Yangtze River Delta region.

Highlights

The spatial structure of regional tourism cooperation networks among 27 cities in the Yangtze River Delta can be explored from the perspective of supply and demand [1,2,3,4]
One mediumdensity agglomeration area is centered on Geyuan Garden and Slender West Lake in Yangzhou, while another is centered on Turtle Head Isle and Nianhua Bay in Wuxi
These agglomeration areas represent the main tourist flows in the Yangtze River Delta, reflecting that tourists tend to travel to attractions with unique tourism resources, better facilities and services, and developed transportation

Summary

Introduction

Tourism enterprises jointly design tourism routes, carry out publicity and promotional activities, provide reception services and other measures, and jointly build the supply network for regional tourism cooperation. The multi-destination travel behaviors of tourists contribute to regional tourism cooperation demand networks. The government, tourism enterprises, and tourists are key driving forces for the formation of regional tourism cooperation networks. The government’s regulation and control power, as well as the executive power of tourism enterprises, promote the optimal combination and orderly development of destinations, and constitute the external driving force for the formation of regional tourism cooperation networks. The multi-destination travel preference of tourists can be regarded as the internal driving force of regional tourism

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