Introduction

Tourism has already evolved into a global activity from the regional group behavior. In the process of tourism resource integration and industry upgrading, many Chinese provinces and cities aim at building a world famous tourism destination. For instance, Hainan Province aims at constructing itself the international tourism island, Beijing, the world city, Chengdu, the world modern garden city, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Tianjin, the world metropolitan. In addition, Fuzhou of Fujian Province, the Beibuwan city of Guangxi Autonomous Region, Changsha of Hunan Province, and many others, are all inclined to construct or perfect themselves to be international tourist destinations. But in many cases, there is no systematic and scientific planning except slogan propaganda, so that practice is somewhat blind and random.

Since 1328, when a French missionary arrived in Tibet, Western explorers and missionaries had came to Tibet one after another. But the true sense of the modern tourism to Tibet began in the 1980s. After decades of accumulation and development, tourism in Tibet is playing an important part in its social and economic structure transition. Contemporary Chinese social development is both motivated and hindered by varied global and local factors, facing a great uncertainty and realistic complexity. At the same time, tourism itself mirrors the complexity of cultural conflict, systematic divergence, interest disputes, power struggle of the 21st century. At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland in2009, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin used a“perfect storm”to describe the challenges of the financial crisis. This is what we are experiencing the complexity of the integration of uncertainty at present. In Tibet，the customs, values, ethnic culture are rapidly changing. Under such a sophisticate circumstance, the restruction of tourism industry is no more an innerenterprise or inner-industry course, but involves a systematic global industrial value chain adjustment. Tourism development is a nonlinear system bearing economic, social and environmental effects, which relies on a harmonious coexistence of the resources and environment, and also exerts a significant impact on many aspects once being put into practice.

Tibet is known as the“Roof of the World”and the“Third Pole of the Earth. ”Tourism resources are abundant there. Firstly, due to the complex topography, diversified climatic conditions, and the harmonious relationship between man and the nature, the landscape still maintains its unique and original beauty with numerous rare animals and plants. Secondly, it has a distinctive, fascinating culture. Historic sites are spread all over and strong religious atmosphere hangs over Lhasa, Shigatse, Qamdo and others cities, which are the center of Tibetan Buddhism. Thirdly, folk art and other cultural elements are also very unique and attractive. Tourism resources in Tibet are distinguished for its long history, uniqueness, conprehensiveness, originality, and mystique. Besides, Tibetan people are the major inhabitants in Tibet, that tourism in Tibet is both ethnic and religious.

Although abundant in tourist resources, the tourist facilities are far lagged off and the ecology is fragile in Tibet. Since the Qinghai-Tibet railway was put into use, the number of tourist to Tibet surged dramatically. It has brought not only a considerable profit but also plenty of social and environmental problems. So, a sustainable development is the only way out for tourism in Tibet. Meanwhile, for its special political situation, Tibet is a place particular in ethnicity, religion, natural conditions, geography, and history. The form and size of tourism industry in Tibet are determined with a full consideration of political factors. So, sophistication is the foremost feature of the world-famous tourist destination system in Tibet.

From the perspective of Complex Adaptive System, sustainable development of a world-famous tourist destination and the systematic construction of tourism couple each other by nature. Sustainable development theory came into form in the process of transforming and using of natural resources along with the existence-threatening situations that deterioration of the environment were affecting human health or even the whole of human. It pursues nature conservation, environment protection, and rational development and utilization of resources. It seeks well-matched long-term interests and short-term benefits in the formation, operation, and development of tourism system, and the coordinated development of economy, society and ecological environment.

Since system science stresses on holistic solutions to complicated problems and the sustainable development of tourism in Tibet is world-affecting, complicate and skeptical issue, this study attempts to find an access to building Tibet as a world-famous tourist destination under the complex system theory framework. It is based on the dynamic evolution paradigm, the coupling relations of the elements of tourism system, and the region-specific realities of Tibet. It aims at forming an integrated driving model by coordinating the long-term interests of various stakeholders within a dynamically participating community under the framework of tourism system. In a people-oriented context of globalization, a sustainable development of the tourism in Tibet by means of scientific planning is the practical path and inevitable choice for Tibet in its harmonious society construction and leapfrog development.

This research divides into 11 chapters. The part of prolegomenon describes the background and significance of the research. Based on nowadays tourism development trend and current development situation of Tibet tourism, it proposes the research frame, focus, methods and so on. Chapter 1 makes a detailed review of tourism destinations at home and aboard. It also makes definitions on“system”, “tourism system”and related concepts. It makes comments on sustainable development, new regionalism, community participation and stakeholder theory. In Chapter 2, considering of strong relevance of tourism product, Tibet can become tourism product with a strong possibility. Therefore, it introduces history, culture economy, geography, population, climate, geology, minerals and other aspects of Tibet. It summarizes and classifies the Tibet natural and cultural resources and the process of tourism development. In this way to make the groundwork for future research. In chapter 3, the author analyzes the specialty of tourism and build up a sustainable development model of world-class tourism destination from the scientific systematic perspective which can push Tibet tourism into Internationalization, standardization, refinement model as an analysis frame. Chapter 4 the researcher analyzes some problems such as small-scale industry, multiple management, lack of supervision, single-mode marketing in Tibet tourism development. It also builds regional culture brand, the different industry alliance, reasonable mechanism of profits distribution, industry innovation and information sharing. Find a way to promote Tibet tourism value chain. Chapter 5 analyzes the six main kinds of tourism products and major existing problems in Tibet and constructed unique product systems based on self-organization mechanism. It brings up a new thread of improving the taste and quality of products by innovating them. Chapter 6 focuses on rural tourism in Tibet. Researchers applies a four-dimension model to state the current situation of tourist service systems in Tibet. By combining new service concepts, new customer perspectives, new transmitting systems and new technologies with the reality of Tibet, it provides a concept support for local rural tourism and overall competitiveness. Chapter 7 attaches importance to community participation in promoting inner mutual relationships between communities and tourism, in establishing stable humorous communities, in improving the scientific and feasibility of planning ardor in improving ethnic self-conscience, ethnic sense of proud, etc. Also, it makes an analysis of the real restricting factors about community participation and enriched the connotation of sustainable tourism in Tibet from the perspectives of the synergistic participation of governments, nongovernments, tourism enterprises, communities, medias and schools. Chapter 8 analyzes the relationship between tourism and environments, for the interaction of which researchers think symbiotic relationship performs the best. The ecoenvironment in Tibet is so fragile that only when we make symbiotic integration come true, can we carry out the connotation of sustainable tourism and provides eco-material for the construction of international tourism in Tibet. In chapter 9, from the cultural homology and product complementary standpoint, it uses the concept of regional tourism integration to form cooperation zone with different connotations as well as to construct motivation mechanism in united regions in Tibet from international, inter-provincial and inter-regional levels. Security systems present as strong support for the whole tourist destination systems. In chapter 10, researcher provides relative integrated security systems for constructing international tourist destinations in Tibet from policy, capital, transport, information, talents and safety perspectives. In chapter 11 of policy suggestion, researcher proposes some practical strategies and measures from the angle of systematic science in connection with current severe issues in Tibet. In conclusion section, starting from value dimension, researchers consider that a sustainable tourist destination is not only sort of a political concept, but also a universal issue needing time and practice to test. Constructing a world-class tourist destination system is by no means done in one move.

Keywords: Tourism Destination; System Science; Sustainable Development; Tibet Tourism