Tourism with Chinese characteristics : the state and the market in China's domestic tourism industry

Abstract

This paper analyzes the state-market relationship in the Chinese domestic tourism industry in the context of China's market reforms. In only twenty years, a large and diverse domestic tourism market has emerged in China. Yet under the principle of "the state guides the market," it is still subject to state intervention. Exactly when and how does the Chinese state intervene in the tourism market? What are the implications for China's market transition? A cross-national comparison and two case studies reveal that China's domestic tourism market is shaped by a schizophrenic mixture of marketconforming and state-leading policies, and by the nature of the state administrative structure. Despite nearly thirty years of market reforms, even a consumer industry such as tourism can still be dominated by the political needs of the state. Yet this paper also suggests that at least in tourism, even Communist Party values may ultimately be tested in the marketplace.