Spatial Differentiation of Rural Touristization and Its Determinants in China: A Geo-detector-based Case Study of Yesanpo Scenic Area

Tourism has emerged as a major driving force in the growth and expansion of rural settlements. After several studies revealed spatial differentiation of touristization among rural settlements, studies were conducted to explain this phenomenon. However, most of these studies explained spatial differentiation of rural touristization in a qualitative way. More robust and detailed quantitative results are needed to evaluate the relative roles of different factors. In this study, which takes Yesanpo tourism as a case study, the Geo-detector method was introduced to evaluate determining factors of rural touristization. Results show that “distance to core entry”, “tourist number and sojourn time”, and “distance to the nearest scenic area” have had a strong effect on the rural touristization in Yesanpo, whereas “distance to river”, “elevation”, “distance to main road”, and “slope” have had a weak influence. The latter did, however, contribute a lot to touristization when interacting with “distance to core entry”, “tourist number and sojourn time”, and “distance to the nearest scenic”, indicating the importance of these four factors. Higher rural touristization occurred in the zone near the core entry, with many tourists, long sojourn times, and proximity to the scenic area.