BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS OF THE RESEARCH LANDSCAPE AND EVOLUTIONARY TRENDS OF CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS ON ECOTOURISM DESTINATIONS: USING VOSVIEWER & CITESPACE

Research on the impacts of climate change on ecotourism destinations is mostly dominated by qualitative descriptions and single-region empirical analyses, suffering from fragmentation and lack of cross-regional analysis, which makes it difficult to grasp the global knowledge landscape and evolutionary trends of this field. This study takes 178 relevant literatures from the Web of Science Core Collection between 2002 and 2025 as samples, employs VOSviewer and CiteSpace for bibliometric analysis, and explores four core issues—research hotspots, distribution of research forces, thematic evolution trends, and research gaps—through methods such as keyword co-occurrence, bibliographic coupling, burst detection, combined with clustering and multi-tool cross-validation. The results show that research in this field has experienced three stages: embryonic, development, and expansion, with an average annual growth rate of 14.6% after 2018. Three core clusters have been formed: Ecosystem Services–Biodiversity, Nature Conservation–Protected Areas, and Online Interaction–Post-Pandemic Recovery. The research themes have gone through three stages: impact documentation, adaptation exploration, and governance optimization. The global research force is characterized by European and American dominance and regional agglomeration, with weak cross-regional cooperation and research gaps in Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Meanwhile, three key research gaps are identified: insufficient research on stakeholders’ micro-behavioral mechanisms, limited cross-regional comparisons of homogeneous destinations, and inadequate exploration of climate adaptation policy linkage mechanisms. This study clarifies the progressive research logic of "vulnerability assessment → adaptation strategy → sustainable governance" in the field, addresses the fragmentation defect of traditional research, and provides a global knowledge landscape for research in this area. Based on this, the study proposes directions including strengthening micro-oriented empirical research, promoting cross-regional comparisons and international cooperation, and advancing technology-enabled research on policy linkage mechanisms. It also suggests expanding data sources and conducting targeted case studies to provide scientific guidance for academic research and practical management of climate adaptation in ecotourism destinations.

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