A Study of Sustainability Issues in a Historic Chinese Water Town as a Cultural Tourism Site
Abstract
The UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) established the Indicators for Sustainable Tourism Workshop in China in 2005. (Bao, 2012). The enterprises involved were urged to plan ahead in order to maintain their competitive edge. In 2012, Bao studied Yangshuo, a popular Chinese tourist site for sightseeing and cultural tourism, and identified several issues, such as negative impacts on animals and the environment, an abundance of visitors, and negative attitudes toward foreigners (Bao, 2012).
The hospitality and dining industries have been the focus of several research in recent years (Liu et al., 2014; Song & Zhang, 2014; Targeted News Service, 2016). (Fabinyi & Liu, 2014). There has been a lack of studies focusing on tourist sites, especially those with a cultural focus. Therefore, there has to be greater study into the long-term viability of China's cultural tourist hotspots. Considering the importance of China's cultural attractions to the country's economy, it is essential to investigate opportunities for fostering cultural tourism in a sustainable manner. Three-sevenths of all international travel is cultural tourism, and this sector is expanding at a rate of 15 percent per year, according to the World Trade Organization (Solimar International, 2015). Sustainable development issues at China's cultural tourism hotspots were also mentioned as a topic for future study. If the report is to be believed, then this is correct. Bao (2012) argues that the UNWTO Indicators for Sustainable Tourism Workshop study might be used by more tourism destinations and that further academic research on sustainable development in China is needed.
The rapid development of China's tourism industry made it imperative to assess the long-term viability of China's cultural tourist attractions. Visitors' and tourists' viewpoints were rarely sought out or analysed in earlier research on Chinese tourism difficulties (Bao, 2012; Fabinyi & Liu, 2014; Liu et al., 2014; Song & Zhang, 2014; Targeted News Service, 2016). Ballantyne, Packer, and Sutherland (2011) claim that organizations may learn about present and future issues by gauging the experiences and happiness of their visitors.
The best strategy to explore issues linked to sustainability in cultural tourism is to collect and analyze data on visitors' experiences and levels of satisfaction following their trips. The results of this kind of study would be useful to both the tourism industry and municipal authorities. The purpose of this research was to examine sustainability issues from the perspective of vacationers.
Keywords
Cultural Tourism, Level of Satisfaction, Cultural AnalysisHow to Cite
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