Evaluating Potential Areas for Mountain Wellness Tourism: A Case Study of Ili, Xinjiang Province

Xumei Pan, Zhaoping Yang, Fang Han, Yayan Lu and Qin Liu
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Xumei Pan: State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China
Zhaoping Yang: State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China
Fang Han: State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China
Yayan Lu: State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China
Qin Liu: State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 20, 1-15

Abstract: Evaluation of land-use suitability can prevent problems, such as environmental disruption, wastage of resources, and ecological disruption, when unsuitable tourism-based exploration is undertaken in an area. This study summarizes a novel concept and proposes the idea of wellness tourism, which constitutes health preservation, sports and recovery, medical healing, and aged nursing, integrated with Chinese culture. A spatial suitability evaluation system for wellness tourism was developed in a mountain area via the integration of the analytic network process-Delphi. As wellness tourism activities diversified, land suitability was assigned to four kinds of wellness tourism activities, while considering their unique requirements. Comparative analysis and five-degree suitable maps of four kinds of activities revealed that Yining City and its peripheral localities have the potential of functioning as a comprehensive and national wellness tourist destination. The counties of Horgos, Huocheng, Qapqal, Zhaosu, Tekes, Tokkuztara, and Narat should make full use of their strengths, as they have the advantage of catering to different wellness tourism activities. This paper discusses some conceptual aspects of wellness tourism, provides an example for the selection of potential areas for wellness tourism in the mountainous regions of China, and provides baseline information that can support the development of wellness tourism.

Keywords: wellness tourism; spatial suitability analysis; mountainous region; ANP; Delphi; GIS (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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