A Model for Sustainable Tourism Development of Hot Spring Destinations Following Poverty Alleviation: Understanding the Tourists’ Perspective

Abstract

Few studies have examined the issue of the sustainable destination development of hot spring from tourists’ perspective. This study thus proposes a model for sustainable tourism development of hot spring destinations following poverty alleviation in local communities. This model is based on environmental (environmental cognition), sociocultural (hot spring experience, food experience, and attitude toward cultural landscape), and economic (revisit intention) dimensions (factors) of sustainability. The analysis of 271 valid on-site questionnaires about the Conghua hot spring destination in Guangzhou, China, showed that the attitude toward cultural landscape, hot spring experiences, and environmental cognition are the important factors that influence the intention of tourists to revisit hot spring. These findings are based on the level of importance; however, food experience did not play a significant role. Through the cultural landscape, the connection between tourists and destinations is strengthened, which helps to increase the likelihood of tourists revisiting the destination. This study found that the purpose of cultural legacy can be achieved while balancing environmental development issues, and is one of the guidelines for sustainable development in poverty alleviation in destination.

A Comparative Study for Eco lodges Architecture to Brand Position Wellness Destinations in Egypt

“…(Gawad, 2020) As such, eco-lodges must contain the main architectural aspects of any competitive and attractive destination, such as tourist attractions, accessibility, accommodation, and amenities. (Wang & Lin, 2021)…”

“…Therefore, eco-lodge architecture is a product resulting from marketing techniques and branding strategies. (Nagy, 2022) Many academic studies (Pike & Mason, 2010) (Anttiroiko, 2018) (Grénman, Hakala, & Mueller, 2019) (Wang & Lin, 2021), have highlighted the importance of brand positioning as a development concept for wellness destination. It is the strategy to reflect a specific vision, wellness attributes, identity, and image, it is the promise that stakeholders want to root in visitors' perceptions.…”

“…(Dini & Pencarelli, 2021) The architectural features of eco-lodges present destination cultural values, preserve wellness resources, and enhance the connection between nature and people, which affect visitors' perceptions and their travel decision. (Wang & Lin, 2021) Egypt is considered one of the wealthiest countries, with wellness resources and a unique identity. However, its international recognition as a wellness destination is limited.…”

Associations between temperature variations and tourist arrivals: analysis based on Baidu Index of hot-spring tourism in 44 cities in China

“…Both environmental pollution and climate change could alter the temperature, pH, and microbes of hot springs, which would influence the ecological balance (Bennett Annastacia et al 2022 ; Canora and Sdao 2022 ). Meanwhile, hot-spring tourism, which could provide different types of leisure and cultural experiences, has been sought after widely by the upper middle class (Chang et al 2022 ; Wang and Lin 2021 ). Therefore, the income from hot-spring tourism is closely related to the local economy and culture.…”

Research on Industry Transformation Models and Influencing Factors of Hot Spring Villages from the Perspective of Sustainable Development: A Case Study of Fujian, China

“…The hot spring industry provides about two million jobs each year, creating an output value of about USD 200 billion [6]. The development of hot spring resources plays an important and positive role in increasing the employment of villagers, improving rural financial income, promoting the sustainable development of rural industries, and achieving common prosperity [7,8]. The huge market demand and attractive market prospects have made rich and high-value-added hot spring resources a hot investment topic [9], which gives hot spring tourism enterprises greater advantages [10].…”