Spatio-Temporal Pattern of World Heritage and Its Accessibility Assessment in China

China's World Heritage Sites exhibit significant local spatial clustering, predominantly in the east-central regions, with hotspots concentrated in these areas. Despite global spatial correlation being insignificant, accessibility is notably high, with 63.18% of sites reachable within one hour from city centers and an average travel time of just 1.03 hours locally. Nationally, the average time cost to reach a heritage site stands at 25.51 hours, with central plains regions offering very high accessibility (under 15 hours), while western and northeastern areas face significant limitations. This pattern suggests strong potential for heritage tourism development, which could boost local economies while prioritizing conservation efforts.

Che, Y., Cao, Y., Wu, R., Liu, J., Chen, L., & Wu, J. (2022). Spatio-Temporal Pattern of World Heritage and Its Accessibility Assessment in China. Sustainability, 14(5), 3033. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14053033