Spatiotemporal Coupling Factors and Mode of Tourism Industry, Urbanization and Ecological Environment: A Case Study of Shaanxi, China

Identifying the factors and patterns of coordinated development in the tourism industry, urbanization, and the ecological environment sheds light on how to ensure the high-quality and sustainable development of the regional economy, but the research on this issue is relatively insufficient. Taking Shaanxi Province as an example, this paper analyzes the spatiotemporal coupling characteristics between the tourism industry, urbanization and ecological environment in cities of Shaanxi Province from 2000 to 2017. After identifying the leading factors of coupling of the three systems, the paper summarizes the coupling development mode in each city under the leading factors. The coupling between the tourism industry, urbanization and ecological environment in various cities has realized the fundamental transformation from incoordination to coordination and finally, formed a spatial development pattern featuring strong central regions, and weak southern and northern regions. Before 2010, ecological environment factors dominated the coupling between the tourism industry, urbanization, and ecological environment in Shaanxi’s cities, while after 2010, urbanization and tourism industry gradually became the leading factors of the coupling development of the three systems. The coupling development mode in each city has generally undergone an evolution process of “ecological environment mode--urbanization mode--tourism industry mode”. A coupling development mode dominated by urbanization has formed in cities in Northern Shaanxi, a coupling development mode dominated by mixed urbanization and the tourism industry has formed in the Guanzhong Region, and a coupling development mode dominated by the tourism industry has formed in cities in Southern Shaanxi. This paper provides theoretical and practical references for promoting the precise macro-control of cities and guaranteeing the high-quality development of the regional economy.