Tourism Gentrification and Shifting Entrepreneurial Governance: A Case Study in Shanghai, China

During the pandemic, when cross-border travel faced tight restrictions, domestic tourism experienced a quicker recovery, with Shanghai emerging as a premier destination for tourists seeking a ‘foreign-feeling’ experience without crossing borders. However, this tourism boom, particularly in historic neighborhoods, caught local governments off guard, prompting them to adapt their planning visions to capitalize on these unexpected tourism opportunities. Based on a case study of the Wukang Road Neighborhood in the former French concession, this research examines how the entrepreneurial local state, in collaboration with market instruments, repackaged historic and cultural endowments and rebranded a middle-class residential neighborhood as a nationally renowned destination. Although local residents were not forcibly displaced during the tourism gentrification process, and some benefited from the upgraded landscape, they encountered increased exclusionary pressures and the loss of sense of place as tourists demands replaced their daily needs. This research adds to the understanding of the pandemic, tourism, and neighborhood change in the Chinese context.