Gap between tourism planning and implementation: A case of China

Abstract In tourism literature, a phenomenon is identified, and considered ubiquitous in planning exercise. Namely, a gap occurs between planning and implementation once the planned approach to tourism development is adopted. Such a phenomenon is not rare to find in China, where tourism has become increasingly important for the country's economy. This paper presents a research that attempts to examine the causes of the gap in a Chinese context, in order to offer insights about what possible countermeasures should be sought. A case study is adopted for the examination which focuses on the 3-year implementation of 2001–2020 Guniujiang Guanyintang Tourism Development Master Plan. These seven major causes are detected: flaws of master planning, planner's inadequate background survey and analysis, planner's inaccurate anticipation, planner's lack of practical experience, practitioner's misunderstanding, divergence of views between practitioner and planner, pitfalls of private investment and imbalance of development between regions of China.