Co-agglomeration of the culture and tourism industries in Chinese cities

Purpose The interaction between the culture and tourism industries is naturally concentrated in cities. However, the effect of their co-agglomeration on urban tourism development depends on their level of integration. This study aims to answer the following questions: Can culture–tourism co-agglomeration promote the development of the tourism economy? Is the effect of culture–tourism co-agglomeration on tourism development moderated by culture–tourism integration? Does culture–tourism co-agglomeration have spatial spillover effects? Design/methodology/approach Taking 262 prefecture-level cities in China from 2009 to 2019 as the research sample, this study measures the degree of culture–tourism co-agglomeration using a co-agglomeration index and measured culture–tourism integration using a coupling coordination degree model. Using a threshold model and a spatial econometric model, this study examined the effect of culture–tourism co-agglomeration on urban tourism development. Findings Culture–tourism co-agglomeration had a positive effect on the urban tourism economy, and the effect differed according to geographical location and city grade. Moreover, culture–tourism co-agglomeration’s effect on the urban tourism economy was affected by the level of culture–tourism integration. When the level of culture–tourism integration crossed the threshold, the positive effect of culture–tourism co-agglomeration on the urban tourism economy will be enhanced. Finally, culture–tourism co-agglomeration had positive spatial spillover effects on surrounding cities. Originality/value This study integrated culture–tourism co-agglomeration, culture–tourism integration and urban tourism economy into the same research framework and innovatively analyzed the effect of the scale and quality of culture–tourism interaction on the urban tourism economy.