Spatiotemporal Evolution of Regional Tourism Ecosystem Service Value: A Case Study of the Yangtze River Delta

Based on the theoretical framework of ecosystem cultural services, this study estimates the tourism ecosystem service value in the Yangtze River Delta region from 2005 to 2020 by applying the equivalence factor method revised by Xie Gaodi et al., with coefficient adjustments incorporating the consumer price index and tourism economic factors. Exploratory spatial data analysis is employed to reveal the spatiotemporal evolution of tourism ecosystem service value. The results indicate that: (1) during the study period, the land-use structure of the Yangtze River Delta underwent significant adjustment, characterized by a continuous decline in Arable land and rapid expansion of Construction land, while Woodland remained relatively stable; changes in the structure of ecological land formed the basis for the evolution of tourism ecosystem service value; (2) the total tourism ecosystem service value exhibited a continuous upward trend, with Shanghai, Suzhou, and Hangzhou contributing the largest shares, and Woodland and Waterbody constituting the primary sources of value; and (3) spatially, tourism ecosystem service value displayed a pronounced “higher-in-the-south and lower-in-the-north” pattern, with high-value clusters concentrated in south-central Zhejiang Province and core urban agglomerations, indicating significant spatial heterogeneity across the region. These findings provide scientific evidence for ecological conservation and sustainable tourism development in the Yangtze River Delta region.