Effects of built environment on tourists’ active travel behaviors

Active travel (walking and cycling) is critical for sustainable tourism destinations by simultaneously addressing environmental impacts, social interaction, and local economic vitality, yet empirical tourism studies on the built environment's effect on active travel remain scarce. This research addresses this gap by systematically evaluating how built environments influence tourists' likelihood of opting for active travel in Seoul, South Korea using multisource geospatial big data (e.g., GPS and built environment data) and machine-learning models. Key findings include: (1) Destination accessibility is the most critical factor; (2) Top six key built environment attributes show non-linear and asymmetric effects in direction (e.g., at origins, subway proximity promotes active travel, whereas bus proximity hinders it) and intensity (e.g., land-use diversity at destinations yields greater returns than at origins). These insights advance the theoretical understanding of tourists' active travel behaviors. Moreover, it provides actionable insights for destination management organizations, thereby contributing to sustainability goals.