Digital financial inclusion and domestic tourism demand: Through the lens of spatial spillover

• Yanzhao Li ^[1] ; Ju-e Guo ^[1] ; Wenjun Zhu ^[2]
  1. [1] Xi'an Jiaotong University

     Xi'an Jiaotong University

     China

     
  2. [2] Nanyang Technological University

     Nanyang Technological University

     Singapur

     
• Localización: Tourism economics: the business and finance of tourism and recreation, ISSN 1354-8166, Vol. 30, Nº. 7 (November), 2024, págs. 1680-1703
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • Domestic tourism demand has dominated the global tourism market and has been more resilient during the COVID-19 pandemic; yet, it is under-studied compared to international tourism demand. Digital financial inclusion (DFI) enables the provision of formal financial products and services to small and medium-sized tourism enterprises and tourists through cost-effective digital means, potentially boosting domestic tourism demand. Integrating micro- and macro-level data from 335 prefecture-level regions in China, we investigate the impact of DFI on domestic tourism demand using spatial panel models. Our analysis reveals significant and positive effects, both direct and spillover, of DFI on domestic tourism demand within a region and across regions. Notably, among the three dimensions of DFI, the usage depth exhibits the most substantial spillover effects. Furthermore, our findings also highlight the crucial role of DFI in internalizing domestic tourism revenues. Our study provides practical implications for sustainable domestic tourism development in the digital era.