Public data openness as an economic policy lever for sustainable tourism: Evidence on mechanisms, spillovers and heterogeneity from Chinese cities

With the rapid rise of the digital economy, public data openness has become a key driver of sustainable tourism development. However, research has paid limited attention to its mechanisms and regional heterogeneity. This study employs panel data from 291 Chinese cities spanning 2007 to 2023, analyzed through a Difference-in-Differences (DID) model and a Spatial Durbin Model (SDM). The analysis examines how public data openness shapes the green and sustainable development of the tourism economy. The empirical findings reveal that public data openness significantly promotes green and sustainable tourism growth, with service innovation and market efficiency functioning as key mediating pathways. In addition, economic development, resource integration, and data governance show positive and significant moderating effects. These regional conditions shape how public data openness influences sustainable tourism development. Furthermore, public data openness generates spatial spillover effects that contribute to the green and sustainable development of the tourism economy. These spillovers are most pronounced in regions with similar economic structures, and their intensity rises as the degree of data openness increases. Overall, this study contributes to strengthening the theoretical nexus between public data openness and sustainable tourism development. It further provides empirical evidence and policy insights to facilitate broader green economic transformation.