Urban agglomeration in the cities of China

Urban agglomeration in the cities of China

Urban agglomeration in the cities of China has increased. This rapid agglomeration process has brought along increased urbanization among these cities. Research has been lounged to investigate the effect of tourism on urban agglomeration in China. By definition, urbanization is the collection/agglomeration of certain economic activities within specific geography (Zhao & Dong, 2017, p. xx). Agglomeration may occur among industries producing the same products, industries producing complementary products, and also industries offering different services and products. The sector of tourism, however, is based on the geographic positioning of the tourist sites. Tourism also heavily relies on urbanization around the areas of tourist interests. Focusing on cultural tourism, urbanization is a significant factor. According to research, tourism positively impacts on urbanization and urban agglomeration (Zhao & Dong, 2017, p. xx). In this case, tourism agglomeration also increases, furthering the growth of urbanization and the development of other infrastructural areas such as transport, which are essential in urban agglomeration. In China, high-speed rail transport amongst huge cities allow tourists to move from one town to another, therefore encouraging more tourist activity around its cities (Zhao & Dong, 2017, p. xx). According to research, tourism is one of the factors that drive urbanization.

Tourism encourages the growth of an economy in several ways, some of which are through tourism arrival, hotel operations, and employment. Tourist arrival positively impacts on an economy through the cash flow of foreign currency from the tourists (Zhou, Liu, & Tang, 2018, p. xx). The foreign currency improves the balancing of international payments, and the host country gains more when trading these currencies. This means that China adds more wealth to the economic sector through foreign exchange done by visiting tourists. Tourism companies also benefit from providing bookings and reservations for tourists, which are mainly paid through foreign currency (Zhou, Liu, & Tang, 2018, p. xx). Tourists spend most of their time in hotels when visiting a foreign country. Through this, tourism indirectly earns revenues to the host country through taxes and costs incurred in different sectors of tourist influence. This is achieved through the development of tourist satisfaction units geared at collecting more revenue from this industry. Most of the satisfaction units are developed in urban areas, therefore increasing the growth of urban centers in the nation.

Tourism indirectly increases the rate of employment in a host country. From tourist arrival to destination areas to residential areas, companies employ more people to serve in the tourism industry. For instance, a company that is created to fill a gap in the tourism industry creates employment opportunities for the citizens of the host country. In another case, a government employs its citizens in geographical tourist destinations to guide and serve tourists visiting the sites (Zhou, Liu, & Tang, 2018, p. xx). As well, hotel and hospitality businesses grow around areas of tourism and therefore create more employment opportunities for unemployed skilled individuals.

However, tourism has also been associated with specific negative impacts that have been associated with the local community. Tourism tries to alter the social and cultural practices of the local people (Su, Aaron, McDowell, & Lu, 2019, p. xx). In this way, tourism accelerates the fading out of cultural practices that define a nation and its people. This alteration may occur over time or in an instance and introduce gaps in the cultures of a nation, affecting the country’s identity.

References

Su, Aaron, McDowell, & Lu. (2019). Sustainable Synergies between Cultural and Tourism Industries: An Efficiency Evaluation Perspective. Sustainability, 11(23), 6607. doi:10.3390/su11236607

Zhao, L., & Dong, Y. (2017). Tourism agglomeration and urbanization: empirical evidence from China. Asia Pacific Journal of Tourism Research, 22(5), 512-523. doi:10.1080/10941665.2016.1277545

Zhou, M., Liu, X., & Tang, G. (2018). Effect of urban tourist satisfaction on urban macroeconomics in China: A spatial panel econometric analysis with a spatial Durbin model. PLOS ONE, 13(10), e0206342. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0206342