Urban tourism is considered a complex system. Tourists who visit cities have diverse purposes, leading to multifaceted travel behaviors. Understanding travel movement patterns is crucial in developing sustainable planning for urban tourism. Built on network science, this article discusses 12 key topologies of travel patterns/flow occurring in a city network by applying network motif analytics. The 12 significant types of travel mobility can account for approximately 50% of the total movement patterns. In addition, this study presents variations in travel movement patterns depending on not only different lengths of stay in topological structures of travel mobility, but also relative proportions of each type. As a result, this article suggests an interdisciplinary approach that adopts the network science method to better understand city travel behaviors. Important methodological and practical implications that could be useful for city destination planners are suggested.
AlonUri. 2007, “Network Motifs: Theory and Experimental Approaches.” Nature Reviews Genetics8 (6): 450–61.
2.
AshworthGregoryPageStephen J. 2011. “Urban tourism research: Recent progress and current paradoxes.” Tourism Management32 (1): 1–15.
3.
BaggioRodolfo. 2017. “Network science and tourism—The State of the Art.” Tourism Review72 (1): 120–31.
4.
BaggioRodolfoSainaghiRuggero. 2011. “Complex and Chaotic Tourism Systems: Towards a Quantitative Approach.” International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management23 (6): 840–61.
5.
BarabásiAlbert-László. 2016. Network Science. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
6.
BauderMichaelFreytagTim. 2015. “Visitor Mobility in the City and the Effects of Travel Preparation.” Tourism Geographies17 (5): 682–700.
7.
BeecoJ. AdamHuangWei-JueHalloJeffrey C.NormanWilliam C.McGeheeNancy G.McGeeJohnGoetcheusCari. 2013. “GPS Tracking of Travel Routes of Wanderers and Planners.” Tourism Geographies15 (3): 551–73.
8.
BelyiAlexanderBojicIvaSobolevskyStanislavSitkoIzabelaHawelkaBartoszRudikovaLadaKurbatskiAlexanderRattiCarlo. 2017. “Global Multi-layer Network of Human Mobility.” International Journal of Geographical Information Science31 (7): 1381–402.
9.
Ben-DaliaSharonCollins-KreinerNogaChurchmanArza. 2013. “Evaluation of an Urban Tourism Destination.” Tourism Geographies15 (2): 233–49.
10.
BeritelliPietroReinholdStephanLaesserChristian. 2020. “Visitor Flows, Trajectories and Corridors: Planning and Designing Places from the Traveler’s Point of View.” Annals of Tourism Research82:102936.
11.
BujosaAngelRieraAntoniPonsPere Josep. 2015. “Sun-and-Beach Tourism and the Importance of Intra-destination Movements in Mature Destinations.” Tourism Geographies17 (5): 780–94.
12.
CaldeiraAna MariaKastenholzElisabeth. 2018. “Tourists’ Spatial Behaviour in Urban Destinations: The Effect of Prior Destination Experience.” Journal of Vacation Marketing24 (3): 247–60.
CarlisleSheenaJohansenAleksanderKuncMartin. 2016. “Strategic Foresight for (Coastal) Urban Tourism Market Complexity: The Case of Bournemouth.” Tourism Management54:81–95.
15.
ChuaAlvinServilloLorisMarcheggianiErnestoMoereAndrew Vande. 2016. “Mapping Cilento: Using Geotagged Social Media Data to Characterize Tourist Flows in Southern Italy.” Tourism Management57:295–310.
De VosJonas. 2020. “The Effect of COVID-19 and Subsequent Social Distancing on Travel Behavior.” Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives5:100121.
18.
EdwardsDeborahGriffinTony. 2013. “Understanding Tourists’ Spatial Behaviour: GPS Tracking as an Aid to Sustainable Destination Management.” Journal of Sustainable Tourism21 (4): 580–95.
19.
EdwardsDeborahGriffinTonyHayllarBruce. 2008. “Urban Tourism Research: Developing an Agenda.” Annals of Tourism Research35 (4): 1032–52.
20.
FennellDavid A.1996. “A Tourist Space-Time Budget in the Shetland Islands.” Annals of Tourism Research23 (4): 811–29.
21.
García-PalomaresJuan CarlosGutiérrezJavierMínguezCarmen. 2015. “Identification of Tourist Hot Spots Based on Social Networks: A Comparative Analysis of European Metropolises Using Photo-Sharing Services and GIS.” Applied Geography63:408–17.
HuntMichael A.CromptonJohn L.2008. “Investigating Attraction Compatibility in an East Texas City.” International Journal of Tourism Research10 (3): 237–46.
24.
JacksonMatthew O.2010. Social and Economic Networks. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
25.
JinChengChengJianquanXuJing. 2018. “Using User-Generated Content to Explore the Temporal Heterogeneity in Tourist Mobility.” Journal of Travel Research57 (6): 779–91.
26.
KangSanghoon. 2016. “Associations between Space–Time Constraints and Spatial Patterns of Travels.” Annals of Tourism Research61:127–41.
27.
KarskiAndy. 1990. “Urban Tourism: A Key to Urban Regeneration.” The Planner76 (13): 15–17.
LauGigiMcKercherBob. 2006. “Understanding Tourist Movement Patterns in a Destination: A GIS Approach.” Tourism and Hospitality Research7 (1): 39–49.
30.
LeeGyeheeMorrisonAlastair M.O’LearyJoseph T.2006. “The Economic Value Portfolio Matrix: A Target Market Selection Tool for Destination Marketing Organizations.” Tourism Management27 (4): 576–88.
31.
LeungXi YuWangFangWuBihuBaiBillyStahuraKurt A.XieZhihua. 2012. A social network analysis of overseas tourist movement patterns in Beijing: The impact of the Olympic Games. International Journal of Tourism Research14 (5): 469–484.
32.
LiJingjingXuLizhiTangLingWangShouyangLiLing. 2018. “Big Data in Tourism Research: A Literature Review.” Tourism Management68:301–23.
LozanoSebastiánGutiérrezEster. 2018. “A Complex Network Analysis of Global Tourism Flows.” International Journal of Tourism Research20 (5): 588–604.
35.
LueChi-ChuanCromptonJohn L.FesenmaierDaniel R.1993. “Conceptualization of Multi-destination Pleasure Trips.” Annals of Tourism Research20 (2): 289–301.
36.
LuoJian MingVuHuy QuanLiGangLawRob. 2019. “Tourist Behavior Analysis in Gaming Destinations Based on Venue Check-in data.” Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing36 (1): 107–18.
37.
MartíPabloSerrano-EstradaLeticiaNolasco-CirugedaAlmudena. 2019. “Social Media Data: Challenges, Opportunities and Limitations in Urban Studies.” Computers, Environment and Urban Systems74:161–74.
38.
McKercherBobShovalNoamNgEricaBirenboimAmit. 2012. “First and Repeat Visitor Behaviour: GPS Tracking and GIS Analysis in Hong Kong.” Tourism Geographies14 (1): 147–61.
39.
MiloRonShen-OrrShaiItzkovitzShalevKashtanNadavChklovskiiDmitriAlonUri. 2002. “Network Motifs: Simple Building Blocks of Complex Networks.” Science298 (5594): 824–27.
40.
NewmanMark. 2018. Networks. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
41.
NewmanMark EdBarabásiAlbert-László EdWattsDuncan J.2006. The Structure and Dynamics of Networks. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
42.
NewmanMark E. J.2003. “The Structure and Function of Complex Networks.” SIAM Review45 (2): 167–256.
43.
OppermannMartin. 1994. “Length of Stay and Spatial Distribution.” Annals of Tourism Research21 (4): 834–36.
44.
OppermannMartin. 1997. “Length of Stay and Travel Patterns.” CAUTHE 1997: Tourism Research: Building a Better Industry; Proceedings from the Australian Tourism and Hospitality Research Conference, 1997.
45.
OrellanaDanielBregtArnold K.LigtenbergArendWachowiczMonica. 2012. “Exploring Visitor Movement Patterns in Natural Recreational Areas.” Tourism Management33 (3): 672–82.
46.
ParkSangwonXuYangJiangLiuChenZhelinHuangShuyi. 2020. “Spatial Structures of Tourism Destinations: A Trajectory Data Mining Approach Leveraging Mobile Big Data.” Annals of Tourism Research84:102973.
47.
Paskaleva-ShapiraKrassimira A.2007. “New Paradigms in City Tourism Management: Redefining Destination Promotion.” Journal of Travel Research46 (1): 108–14.
48.
PearceDouglas G.2001. “An Integrative Framework for Urban Tourism Research.” Annals of Tourism Research28 (4): 926–46.
49.
PengHongsongZhangJinheLiuZehuaLuLinYangLu. 2016. Network analysis of tourist flows: A cross-provincial boundary perspective. Tourism Geographies18 (5): 561–586.
50.
RaunJanikaAhasReinTiruMargus. 2016. “Measuring Tourism Destinations Using Mobile Tracking Data.” Tourism Management57:202–12.
51.
ReinholdS.LaesserC.BeritelliP.2020. “Flow-Based Destination Management and Marketing: A Perspective Article.” Tourism Review75 (1): 174–78.
52.
SchneiderChristian M.BelikVitalyCouronnéThomasSmoredaZbigniewGonzálezMarta C.2013. “Unravelling Daily Human Mobility Motifs.” Journal of The Royal Society Interface10 (84): 20130246.
53.
ShovalN.2012. “Time Geography and Tourism.” In The Routledge Handbook of Tourism Geographies, edited by WilsonJ., 174–80. London: Routledge.
54.
ShovalNoamIsaacsonMichal. 2007. “Tracking Tourists in the Digital Age.” Annals of Tourism Research34 (1): 141–59.
55.
ShovalNoamMcKercherBobBirenboimAmitNgErica. 2015. “The Application of a Sequence Alignment Method to the Creation of Typologies of Tourist Activity in Time and Space.” Environment and Planning B: Planning and Design42 (1): 76–94.
56.
ShovalNoamMcKercherBobNgEricaBirenboimAmit. 2011. “Hotel Location and Tourist Activity in Cities.” Annals of Tourism Research38 (4): 1594–612.
57.
StienmetzJasonKimJeongmi JamieXiangZhengFesenmaierDaniel R.2020. “Managing the Structure of Tourism Experiences: Foundations for Tourism Design.” Journal of Destination Marketing & Management19:100408.
58.
StoneLewiSimberloffDanielArtzy-RandrupYael. 2019. “Network Motifs and Their Origins.” PLoS Computational Biology15 (4): e1006749.
59.
SuRongxiangMcBrideElizabeth CallahanGouliasKonstadinos G.2020. “Pattern Recognition of Daily Activity Patterns Using Human Mobility Motifs and Sequence Analysis.” Transportation Research Part C: Emerging Technologies120:102796.
60.
TaczanowskaKarolinaGonzálezLuis-MillánGarcia-MassóXavierMuharAndreasBrandenburgChristianeToca-HerreraJosé-Luis. 2014. “Evaluating the Structure and Use of Hiking Trails in Recreational Areas Using a Mixed GPS Tracking and Graph Theory Approach.” Applied Geography55:184–92.
61.
TideswellCarmenFaulknerBill. 1999. “Multidestination Travel Patterns of International Visitors to Queensland.” Journal of Travel Research37 (4): 364–74.
62.
VuHuy QuanLiGangLawRobYeBen Haobin. 2015. “Exploring the Travel Behaviors of Inbound Tourists to Hong Kong Using Geotagged Photos.” Tourism Management46:222–32.
63.
VuHuy QuanLiGangLawRobZhangYanchun. 2018. “Travel Diaries Analysis by Sequential Rule Mining.” Journal of Travel Research57 (3): 399–413.
64.
WangXiao FanChenGuanrong. 2003. “Complex Networks: Small-World, Scale-Free and Beyond.” IEEE Circuits and Systems Magazine3 (1): 6–20.
65.
WuCheng-LungCarsonDean. 2008. “Spatial and Temporal Tourist Dispersal Analysis in Multiple Destination Travel.” Journal of Travel Research46 (3): 311–17.
66.
XiaJianhongArrowsmithC.2008. “Techniques for Counting and Tracking the Spatial and Temporal Movement of Visitors.” In Monitoring, Simulation, and Management of Visitor Landscapes, edited by Skov-PetersenH.GimblettR., 85–105. Tucson: University of Arizona Press.
67.
YangLiuWuLunLiuYuKangChaogui. 2017. “Quantifying Tourist Behavior Patterns by Travel Motifs and Geo-Tagged Photos from flickr.” ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information6 (11):345.
68.
YangShusenYangXinyuZhangChaoSpyrouEvangelos. 2010. “Using Social Network Theory for Modeling Human Mobility.” IEEE Network24 (5): 6–13.
69.
YangYangZhangHongruChenXiang. 2020. “Coronavirus Pandemic and Tourism: Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium Modeling of Infectious Disease Outbreak.” Annals of Tourism Research83:102913.
70.
ZhaoXiLuXiaoniLiuYuanyuanLinJunAnJun. 2018. “Tourist Movement Patterns Understanding from the Perspective of Travel Party Size Using Mobile Tracking Data: A Case Study of Xi'an, China.” Tourism Management69:368–83.
71.
ZhaoZiliangShawShih-LungXuYangLuFengChenJieYinLing. 2016. “Understanding the Bias of Call Detail Records in Human Mobility Research.” International Journal of Geographical Information Science30 (9): 1738–62.
72.
ZillingerMalin. 2007. “Tourist Routes: A Time-Geographical Approach on German Car-Tourists in Sweden.” Tourism Geographies9 (1): 64–83.
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
