Analysis of international tourist arrivals in China: The role of World Heritage Sites

Abstract

a b s t r a c tThis paper analyzes the determinants of international tourist arrivals in China, especially for World Heritage Sites and various kinds of travel spots. Utilizing annual provincial panel data over the 2000-2005 period, the empirical results suggest that key determinants include the relative income, population in the original country, cost of travel, and tourism infrastructure. In addition, World Heritage Sites are also found to be significant in explaining the numbers of international tourists and have a greater touristenhancing effect. Other famous tourist sites rated 4A-and 3A-class are also attractive to foreign tourism. Moreover, cultural rather than natural sites attract more interest among foreign tourists, because China is internationally renowned for its long-standing historical and cultural assets. Finally, the importance of the determinants of the demand for tourism varies from country to country.

Impact of cultural distance on international destination choices: The case of Chinese outbound travelers

“…Income and market size are widely accepted as having positive influence on tourists' destination choice (Huang, Tsaur, & Yang, 2012;Yang, Lin, & Han, 2010). Per capita GDP and population size have been used to reflect income and market size (Huang et al, 2012).…”

“…Exchange rate between the destination and tourists' originating country plays an important role. When a destination's currency appreciates, it signals a higher price compared to alternative destinations for international travelers (Yang et al, 2010).…”

“…We controlled variables including per capita GDP (PGDP) and population (POP) of China to capture income and market size as those two variables are widely accepted as being associated with a positive effect on tourism (Yang et al, 2010 …”

Intangible Cultural Heritage and Sustainable Tourism in Córdoba, Spain

“…This signifies that, on occasion, the designation of a certain site as WHS is perceived as "branding" [18] or "labelling" [20] and that the recognition by the UNESCO, in addition to reinforcing the protection of the heritage, has a strong attraction for the tourist, signifying a global recommendation so that a certain type of tourists visit that destination [21], especially for those that travel seeking authentic experiences and genuine places [22]. For this reason, heritage is seen as one of the most significant and fastest growing aspects of tourism [13].…”

World Heritage List: does it make sense?

“…The consequences of being listed, in particular on the number of visitors frequenting these Sites, are studied e.g. in Bonet (2003), Tisdell and Wilson (2002) or Yang (2009).…”