Coupling coordination between agriculture and tourism in the Qinba Mountain area: a case study of Shanyang County, Shanxi Province

The integrated development of agriculture and tourism is one of the important ways to promote the revitalization of rural industries. This paper measures the coupling and coordination level of agricultural and tourism development in Shanyang County, Qinba Mountain area, for the period of 2011–2020, by constructing an index system and a coupling coordination model. The study reveals the following findings: (1) From 2011 to 2020, the evaluation index of agriculture development in Shanyang County exhibited significant fluctuations, with an overall downward trend. In contrast, the evaluation index of tourism development experienced rapid growth and surpassed agriculture from 2018 onwards. (2) There is a significant coupling relationship between the agricultural and tourism industry systems in Shanyang County. The coupling coordination has slowly increased, undergoing an evolution from being nearly uncoordinated to weak coordination and to reaching a primary level of coordination. Therefore, Shanyang County should attach importance to the fundamental role of agriculture in the coordinated development of agricultural tourism, seek joint regional development, and benefit the whole people.