Report Released丨"2018 Tourism Economic Operation Review" Series Report (IV): National Leisure and Regional Tourism Development

On January 14, the China Tourism Academy (Data Center of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism) released the "2018 Tourism Economic Operation Review Series Report: National Leisure and Regional Tourism Development". The report shows that in 2018, national leisure and domestic tourism have deepened their development, with national leisure showing the characteristics of "two increases and one decrease", and regional tourism development "steady with changes and continuous convergence". In 2019, regional space optimization and active methods will become the main trends of national leisure, and the release of special policy dividends will help the development of tourism in central and western China. It is necessary to focus on the optimization of leisure time and the imbalance of regional development.

1. Characteristics of the development of national leisure and regional tourism in my country in 2018

1. The leisure environment is further optimized, and the leisure time is slowing down.

In 2018, relevant departments took the implementation of the paid leave system for employees as an important starting point, and proposed to vigorously implement the paid leave system for employees through various forms to protect the legitimate rights and interests of employees. Flexible work and rest schedules and staggered vacations are encouraged to avoid the negative impact of concentrated vacations. With the gradual advancement of policies such as the implementation of paid annual leave and the construction of harmonious labor relations, the trend of the continuous reduction of leisure time for urban and rural residents in my country has slowed down, and the leisure level brought by economic development and residents has been improved simultaneously.

2. Leisure space is further expanded and the gap between urban and rural areas is gradually narrowed

New urbanization is gradually reversing the construction tendency of "focusing on production and neglecting life". Urban planning pays more attention to leisure and recreation functions, strengthens the construction of public service facilities such as cultural facilities, and builds a convenient life service circle, which is conducive to improving the leisure space of urban residents' communities. New rural construction and the development of beautiful villages and rural tourism are improving the rural living environment, promoting the equalization of public cultural services and national fitness, and helping to narrow the gap in the scale, structure and quality of urban and rural leisure.

(III) The proportion of “active” leisure activities increased, forming a new consumption hotspot

In 2018, the leisure activities of Chinese residents became more "active", the proportion of indoor leisure decreased, and the proportion of integrated leisure and in-depth leisure such as tourism increased. In terms of regions, the supply-side reform has optimized the leisure environment, and the proportion of "active" leisure of urban residents has further increased, enjoying the comprehensive welfare function brought by leisure. Rural residents still mainly engage in "passive" leisure, and leisure activities have not yet fully played their positive role in improving the welfare of rural residents. The state has paid attention to this and gradually solved it.

4. Multiple management of leisure resources restricts the formation of a unified leisure space

Rural leisure spaces are gradually playing a role in tourism and leisure, but overall they are not very accessible. Many nature reserves are simply closed for fear of trouble, and tourists are turned away. my country's nature reserves include nature reserves, scenic spots, forest parks, geological parks and other types. The management of rural leisure spaces is multi-faceted and lacks unified planning. There is a lack of tourist greenways connecting scenic spots, and integrated and accessible rural leisure spaces have not yet been formed.

5. There is still a certain degree of mismatch between the supply and demand of leisure services

Some public institutions have weak service awareness, backward management methods, insufficient application of modern technology, and are unable to timely adjust opening hours, leisure products, and service content according to the characteristics of residents' leisure needs. There is a different degree of temporal and spatial dislocation between supply and demand. In many areas, commercial complexes, private leisure projects, and paid scenic spots are crowded with people, while free museums, cultural centers, and tourist information centers are deserted. A large amount of public service investment has not brought about a full improvement in residents' leisure level, and the people do not have a sense of gain.

(VI) The trend of balanced potential travel capacity among regions is gradually emerging

From the perspective of regional tourism development trends, the gap between the three major regions of East, Central and West has shown a clear trend of convergence, both in terms of cumulative potential travel power and the comprehensive development level of the tourism industry, and a regional equilibrium pattern has gradually emerged. In 2018, the ratio of potential travel power from the source areas of the three major regions of East, Central and West was about 6.2:2.4:1.4, which has converged compared to the long-term three-level ladder distribution pattern of "7:2:1", and gradually showed a trend of balanced development.

7. The speed of tourism industrialization in the central and western regions is higher than that in the eastern region

The latecomer effect and comparative advantage of tourism development in the central and western regions are gradually becoming more prominent. According to the latest analysis of tourism revenue data from various provinces, the growth rates of tourism revenue in the central and western regions were 25.79% and 27.69% respectively, exceeding the 9.63% in the eastern region; the growth rates of tourist arrivals were 18.62% and 22.65% respectively, exceeding the 3.55% in the eastern region.

(VIII) The interaction of passenger flows between regions has been strengthened, leading to the emergence of a balanced development pattern

The spatial pattern of regional tourism flows is generally stable, and the eastern region maintains a strong advantage in terms of tourist flow and convenient tourism transportation. Compared with the data in 2010, the tourism flow in the central and western regions showed a rapid development trend. For example, the tourism flow in the Chengdu-Chongqing area and the Pearl River Delta increased by 105.8%, and the convenience increased by 114.8%. The rapid growth of tourism flows has driven the interactive development of capital flows, information flows, talent flows, and cultural flows, and has promoted the balanced development among regions.

9. The comprehensive competitiveness of leisure cities is still dominated by the eastern region

The research results show that Shenzhen, Beijing, Guangzhou, Lhasa, Xiamen, Nanjing, Shanghai, Suzhou, Hangzhou and Wuhan ranked relatively high in the ranking of leisure cities in China in 2018. The top ten cities among the 40 cities are Shenzhen, Beijing, Guangzhou, Lhasa, Xiamen, Nanjing, Shanghai, Suzhou, Hangzhou and Wuhan.

10. Policy dependence, market entities and economic connections are issues that require attention

Many local governments in the central and western regions have a serious "wait, rely, and ask" mentality. The tourism industry in non-policy radiation areas has developed slowly, and the internal development gap is large, and there is even a trend of expansion. There is a clear regional differentiation of market entities, and the endogenous driving force in the central and western regions is insufficient. The eastern region has gathered more than 80% of the country's core tourism enterprises, while the central and western regions are mostly "weak, small, and scattered" enterprises. Taking the top 20 Chinese tourism groups as an example, almost all of the top 20 groups are headquartered in the eastern region. In addition, the supporting elements of the tourism industry in the central and western regions still need to be improved, and the lack of a large amount of follow-up funds is the biggest bottleneck restricting the development of tourism in the central and western regions.

2. Development Trends and Countermeasures in 2019

In 2019, regional space optimization and active use of methods will become the main trends in national leisure in my country. Product structure will be further optimized, and effective leisure supply will be improved. Urban and rural leisure facilities will continue to improve, and the national leisure level will be improved. The integration of culture and tourism will inject high-quality content into tourism and leisure, and help improve the quality of leisure. The release of special policy dividends is expected to promote tourism development in the central and western regions. The comprehensive effects of special strategies such as the "Belt and Road", targeted poverty alleviation strategy, border tourism demonstration areas, poverty alleviation tourism demonstration sites, and red tourism demonstration sites that are biased towards the central and western regions will gradually emerge. With the opening of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bridge, the tourism market in the Greater Bay Area will have a new pattern.

It is advisable to expand time and optimize space as a breakthrough to improve the quality of residents' leisure and sense of gain. By increasing the total amount of national leisure time, promoting the implementation of paid vacations, and encouraging employees to take staggered vacations, expand leisure time. By building a global national leisure space system, achieve the "balance between leisure and residence" of residents. Improve the problem of unbalanced regional development based on national strategies. Consolidate the effect of poverty alleviation through tourism by actively developing and improving rural tourism, folk tourism and ecotourism. Expand passenger flow in the east with the help of transportation network construction, and connect transportation connections and industrial element supply.

Original manuscript: Zhang Youyin, Guo Na, Wu Fenglin, Huang Huang, Li Xue

Edited by: Guo Na

Produced by: He Qiongfeng, Zhang Jiayi

Source: China Tourism Academy (Data Center of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism)

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