Spatiotemporal evolution and influencing factors of eco-tourism competitiveness in countries along the belt and road

The ecological environment serves as a pivotal factor in ensuring the sustainable development of the tourism industry, which, in turn, acts as a crucial link in stimulating economic growth and fostering deeper understanding and trust among countries and regions along the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Consequently, an increasing number of nations are prioritizing eco-tourism development to bolster international tourism collaboration and partnerships. To foster tourism collaboration along the BRI, this study analyzed data from 50 countries along the route spanning 2000 to 2021, employing the Entropy Weight-TOPSIS method to assess their respective weights in economic, social, tourism resource, and environmental dimensions. Furthermore, spatial autocorrelation and Local Indicators of LISA maps were utilized to unravel the spatio-temporal evolution patterns and clustering characteristics of eco-tourism competitiveness among these countries. Additionally, the Spatial Durbin Model was employed to explore the influencing factors. The primary result showed that: (1) China’s eco-tourism competitiveness index significantly outpaces that of other countries; (2) The eco-tourism competitiveness index of countries along the BRI demonstrates an overall steady upward trend in spatial distribution; (3) The majority of countries along the route exhibit insignificant spatial clustering, lacking both high-high and low-low clusters; (4) Regarding influencing factors, EF, PPP, and the degree of openness are found to have significant positive impacts on eco-tourism competitiveness, while the informatization rate and population structure have significant negative effects. Moreover, industrial structure exerts a negative but insignificant influence on eco-tourism competitiveness, and the spillover effect is evident.