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Revisiting the Relationship between World Heritage Sites and Tourism

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  • Chih-Hai Yang
  • Hsun-Yu Lin

Abstract

As the number of World Heritage Sites (WHSs) is time-invariant or rarely changing in the short run, the panel data model reaches inconsistent estimates of the real effect of WHSs on tourist arrivals. This study adopts two alternative techniques, the fixed-effect vector decomposition (FEVD) approach and the two-stage, double fixed-effect (TSDFE) model, to revisit the WHS–tourism nexus. Based on China's provincial-level panel data over the 2000–2005 period, estimates using the fixed-effect panel data model show an insignificant impact of WHSs on tourist arrivals. Crucially, the empirical results obtained from both FEVD and TSDFE confirm a positive relationship between WHSs and international tourists in China. Moreover, cultural WHSs tend to exhibit a stronger tourism-enhancing effect than the natural WHSs. This study also highlights the importance of dealing with the time-invariant and/or rarely changing attributes in examining tourism demand.

Suggested Citation

  • Chih-Hai Yang & Hsun-Yu Lin, 2014. "Revisiting the Relationship between World Heritage Sites and Tourism," Tourism Economics, , vol. 20(1), pages 73-86, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:toueco:v:20:y:2014:i:1:p:73-86
    DOI: 10.5367/te.2013.0359
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    Cited by:

    1. Yu-Xia Lin & Ming-Hsiang Chen & Bi-Shu Lin & Shu-Yin Tseng & Ching-Hui (Joan) Su, 2021. "Nonlinear impact of World Heritage Sites on China’s tourism expansion," Tourism Economics, , vol. 27(4), pages 795-819, June.
    2. Fernández Guzmán Antonio Muñoz & Pérez-Gálvez Jesús Claudio & López-Guzmán Tomás, 2016. "Tourist motivations in a heritage destination in Spain," European Journal of Tourism, Hospitality and Recreation, Sciendo, vol. 7(3), pages 226-235, December.
    3. Onur Selcuk & Hatice Karakas & Beykan Cizel & Emre Ipekci Cetin, 2023. "How does tourism affect protected areas?: A multi-criteria decision making application in UNESCO natural heritage sites," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 117(2), pages 1923-1944, June.
    4. Leask, Anna, 2016. "Visitor attraction management: A critical review of research 2009–2014," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 334-361.
    5. Elina Simone & Rosaria Rita Canale & Amedeo Maio, 2019. "Do UNESCO World Heritage Sites Influence International Tourist Arrivals? Evidence from Italian Provincial Data," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 146(1), pages 345-359, November.
    6. Canale, Rosaria Rita & De Simone, Elina & Di Maio, Amedeo & Parenti, Benedetta, 2019. "UNESCO World Heritage sites and tourism attractiveness: The case of Italian provinces," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 114-120.
    7. Mohamed Abdalla Elsayed Hassan & Konstantina Zerva & Silvia Aulet, 2021. "Brand Personality Traits of World Heritage Sites: Text Mining Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-19, May.
    8. Husanjon Juraturgunov & Murodjon Raimkulov & Young-joo Ahn & Eunice Minjoo Kang, 2023. "World Heritage Site Tourism and Destination Loyalty along the Silk Road: A Study of U.S. Travelers in Uzbekistan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-21, June.
    9. Cheng Zhang & Wei Cheng & Wanli Zhang, 2023. "Does World Heritage inscription promote regional tourism? Evidence from China," Tourism Economics, , vol. 29(4), pages 929-951, June.
    10. Yang, Yang & Xue, Lan & Jones, Thomas E., 2019. "Tourism-enhancing effect of World Heritage Sites: Panacea or placebo? A meta-analysis," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 29-41.

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