Abstract This study examines the coordinated development of tourism development (TD) and the production-living-ecological system (PLES) on Hainan Island. Using the entropy weight method, the coupling coordination degree model, spatial autocorrelation analysis, and the grey correlation degree model, the study analyzes their relationship during the period from 2011 to 2020. The results show the overall development levels of tourism and the PLES on Hainan Island and the spatiotemporal changes in their coupling coordination degree. The findings indicate that the number of domestic overnight tourists and the total number of hotels are important factors affecting the PLES. In addition, the number of overnight stays by inbound tourists and domestic overnight tourists plays an important role in the coordinated development of the two systems. These findings contribute to a better understanding of sustainable tourism development and have important implications for several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by providing empirical evidence on how island destinations can balance tourism growth with production, living, and ecological sustainability. Based on these findings, the study proposes several policy recommendations.
Yang et al. (2026) studied this question.