Spatio-temporal Differentiation of Urban Tourism Vitality in Lanzhou City Center

Abstract

Against the backdrop of accelerating urbanization and the deepening integration of the experience economy, urban tourism vitality has become a crucial linkage between urban functions, cultural assets, and ecological systems. Taking the central urban area of Lanzhou—a quintessential valley-type city—as the study area, this research integrates Baidu population heatmap data, multi-dimensional geographical information, and socioeconomic statistics. By employing Kernel Density Estimation and Global and Local Moran’s I indices, the study investigates the spatiotemporal differentiation patterns and driving mechanisms of tourism vitality across macro-scale human flow aggregation and intrinsic urban characteristics. The results indicate that: (1) Spatially, constrained by the “two mountains flanking one river” topography, tourism vitality exhibits a pronounced “core–periphery” polarization and a “ribbon-like and clustered” agglomeration pattern, with the riparian zones of Chengguan and Qilihe Districts forming a stable high-vitality core, while Anning and Xigu Districts constitute extensive low-vitality cold spots. (2) Temporally, tourism vitality demonstrates strong “day-type dependency”: rest days follow a “mid-afternoon unimodal peak” pattern with the highest intensity; working days display a “trough–surge–plateau” trajectory locked by commuting rhythms and yield the lowest polarization; public holidays (Qingming Festival) exhibit a “broad-peak persistence” with peripheral hotspot diffusion driven by extended leisure time budgets. (3) The non-equilibrium evolution of tourism vitality is jointly shaped by valley-topography confinement, spatial allocation of tourism-commercial functions, and temporal constraints of human activities. These findings enhance the understanding of human–land relationships in valley-type cities and provide a scientific basis for optimizing tourism spatial planning and peak-period crowd management in nodal cities of Northwest China.