Spatial Assessment of Ecotourism Development Suitability Incorporating Carrying Capacity in the Yellow River Estuary National Park

Haoyu Wang, Yanming Zhang (), Quanbin Wang, Jing Yu () and Chunjiu Yuan
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Haoyu Wang: College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266100, China
Yanming Zhang: Qingdao Municipal Landscape Gardens and Forestry Bureau, Qingdao 266075, China
Quanbin Wang: First Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources, Qingdao 266061, China
Jing Yu: College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266100, China
Chunjiu Yuan: Qingdao Municipal Landscape Gardens and Forestry Bureau, Qingdao 266075, China

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 18, 1-23

Abstract: Ecotourism is vital for harmonious human–nature coexistence in national parks, making the quantification of its spatial suitability an urgent scientific priority. This study took the Yellow River Estuary National Park (YRENP) as the study area and constructed a multi-criteria evaluation model by interpreting the relationship between Ecotourism Environmental Carrying Capacity (EECC) and Ecotourism Development Suitability (EDS), addressing the critical gap in the integrated land–sea ecotourism suitability assessment for coastal national parks, using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to determine indicator weights and ArcGIS for spatial visualization. Multi-source geospatial data, including land use, NDVI, DEM, and socio-economic datasets, were integrated. The results revealed the following: (1) Overall moderate EECC levels with stronger terrestrial capacity contrast with weaker marine capacity—high-carrying zones being limited to nearshore areas; (2) The overall EDS level was favorable, where southern section significantly outperformed northern zones, forming concentrated high-suitability clusters encircling lower-suitability areas; (3) Marine EDS slightly exceeds terrestrial suitability, with optimal coastal zones transitioning landward toward progressively higher suitability. This research provided a replicable methodology for ecotourism suitability assessment in coastal protected areas and supported sustainable spatial planning in land–sea integrated national parks.

Keywords: Yellow River Estuary National Park; ecotourism; carrying capacity; development suitability; land-sea integration (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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