Evaluation for the Development Potential of Rural Recreational Resources Surrounding Megacities: A Case Study of Zhengzhou

Abstract

Under the requirements of ecological civilization and rural revitalization strategies in China, studying and evaluating the development potential of rural recreational resources surrounding the urban areas of megacities is of great significance for promoting the integrated development of urban and rural areas. Based on the collection and processing of multi-source datasets, this paper proposes corresponding evaluation methods for the development potential of three types of rural recreational resources (nature-historical culture-village). It combines AHP-entropy weight combination weighting, GIS spatial analysis, and Graphab network connectivity analysis to explore and evaluate the potential of rural recreational resources within the Zhengzhou urban area, which is in Central China. It quantifies the contribution degree and development priority of potential points to the overall recreational network. The results show that the recreational resources in rural areas are abundant and have great development potential. High potential points of the natural category are concentrated in the western shallow mountainous and hilly areas, with convenient transportation and a high green coverage rate, suitable for developing as suburban forest parks. High-potential points of historical sites are close to the urban area, and should be integrated and connected with the urban leisure corridors, suitable for developing as suburban cultural parks. High-potential points of villages are suitable for creating composite stations (homestay, study, folk customs) and developing into key nodes of the recreational network. Potential points with high contribution to the overall recreational network should be prioritized for development. In the future, the optimization and development of rural recreational resources can be achieved through four paths of overall planning, key promotion, brand driving, and network collaboration.

1. Introduction

Rural recreational resources around cities serve as a crucial carrier for urban residents to relieve stress, engage with nature, pursue physical fitness, and enrich their spiritual lives [1]. They also constitute the natural foundation for cities to achieve healthy and sustainable development [2]. Driven by national strategies such as Rural Revitalization and Beautiful Countryside Construction in China in recent years, the rural human settlement environment has been increasingly improved [3]. The value of rural recreational resources has become more prominent [4], and people’s demand for access to natural environments and rural recreational opportunities has been growing steadily [5]. The spirit of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China further states that “it is necessary to carry out scientific classification and adopt differentiated development strategies based on the resource endowments, location conditions, development foundations, and cultural characteristics of different villages; to deeply explore and integrate ecological and cultural resources, create tourism products with core attractiveness, and convert ecological advantages into development advantages that enrich the people and strengthen the townships”. Therefore, with significant composite values in economic, social, and ecological aspects, developing rural recreational resources has emerged as an important component of the high-quality development of metropolitan areas [6].

As the material basis for recreational activities, recreational resources refer to the sum of various natural and humanistic elements that can provide people with rich recreational experiences and meet their needs for leisure, entertainment, relaxation, etc. [7]. According to the classification of regional attributes, they can be divided into urban recreational resources and rural recreational resources [8]. Urban recreational resources refer to the composite existing within urban areas that can provide people with multiple recreational functions such as leisure, entertainment, and cultural experience during their leisure time [9]. Rural recreational resources are defined as the sum of various natural and humanistic elements located in rural areas, which can provide people with leisure and recreational experiences and meet the needs of returning to nature, relaxing, and experiencing rural life [10]. Endowed with unique resource advantages, rural recreational resources are distinct from urban ones, featuring strong rural characteristics and an idyllic atmosphere. In terms of resource attributes, recreational resources can be categorized into natural and humanistic types. Natural recreational resources are dominated by natural environmental elements and possess inherent natural characteristics, such as mountains, rivers, and forests, which offer people opportunities to get close to nature and enjoy natural scenery [11]. Humanistic recreational resources are those created or preserved through human activities, carrying certain historical, cultural, and artistic connotations, such as historical relics and cultural sites. Referring to the above-mentioned concepts and standards, this study classifies rural recreational resources into two major categories: natural rural recreational resources and humanistic rural recreational resources. The humanistic category is further subdivided into historical and cultural recreational resources and village recreational resources. Village recreational resources refer to various resources within village boundaries that can attract tourists to engage in leisure and recreational activities, meet people’s diverse recreational needs, and integrate both natural landscapes and humanistic features [12]. At the landscape level, the idyllic scenery, traditional architecture, and natural landscapes they present together constitute the rural landscapes available for recreation [13]. At the cultural level, they carry unique folk customs and time-honored historical stories, serving as an important carrier for the inheritance and development of regional culture [14]. Exploring and evaluating the development potential of rural recreational resources is of great significance for promoting the implementation of China’s Rural Revitalization Strategy.

Previous studies on the evaluation of recreational resource potential mostly focused on scenic spots or national parks [15], and lacked attention to ordinary natural and rural recreational resources. The research perspectives mostly covered aspects such as resource value [16], visitor preferences [17], landscape perception [18], site selection [19] and route planning [20]. With the emergence of big data, some studies have also emerged that analyze the spatial pattern and supply-demand matching degree of recreational resources from the perspective of spatial configuration [21]. With the continuous expansion of the urban scale, the demand for natural rural landscapes by urban residents has rapidly increased [22]. Traditional villages and beautiful countryside have become popular recreational destinations in China in the new era [23], giving rise to many studies focusing on the exploration of traditional village culture and tourism value. The evaluation index system is mostly constructed based on different research purposes [24]. Analytic hierarchy process (AHP), entropy weight method, etc., are frequently adopted index weighting methods [25,26,27]. However, there are still gaps and deficiencies in the special planning and scientific research targeting rural recreational resources. The green space recreational network planning is only included as a chapter in the urban-rural green space system planning, which focuses on the construction of network structure and its composite functions [28], while neglecting the value and development potential of other types of rural recreational resources. Although some scholars have proposed the integrated planning of multiple types of recreational resources [29], there is still a lack of scientific evaluation on their development potential. In terms of recreational potential evaluation, most studies focus on the utilization and development potential of a single type of recreational resource [30], and lack consideration for the areas around metropolitan areas that are in urgent need of potential exploration [31].

Zhengzhou is one of the megacities in central China with a population exceeding 10 million. The urban residents have a high demand for natural rural resources. Moreover, this region has China’s ancient Yellow River culture, Shang city culture, Songshan temple culture and agricultural culture. It is rich in resources and scattered in distribution, making it a typical area for researching and exploring the potential of rural recreational resources. This study intends to evaluate the development potential of various rural recreational resources around this metropolise from the perspectives of network integrity [32] and connectivity [33]. The main purpose is to propose a research framework for evaluating the potential of rural recreational resources, providing a basis for the orderly development and construction of such resources. The significant is to offer a diverse and accessible outdoor recreational network for urban residents. We believe that this research will not only provide guidance for the planning of the recreational system in Zhengzhou, but also offer a reference for the exploration and development of rural recreational resources around other megacities.

2. Methods

2.1. Study Area

Zhengzhou, situated in central China (Figure 1a), serves as the capital of Henan Province (Figure 1b). It is also a national historical and cultural city, a national regional central city, and a core demonstration zone for ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin. In 2024, the permanent population of Zhengzhou was 13.086 million, with an urbanization rate of 81%, indicating that the city has entered a stable stage of urban development. Currently, the focus of Zhengzhou’s urban construction and development lies in meeting the demands of urban residents for a better life and shaping distinctive urban characteristics. The city covers a total area of 7567 square kilometers, consisting of 6 administrative districts (Zhongyuan District, Erqi District, Guancheng Hui District, Jinshui District, Shangjie District, Huiji District), 1 county (Zhongmu County), 4 functional zones (Zhengzhou Airport Economy Zone, Zhengdong New District, Zhengzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone, Zhengzhou High-Tech Industrial Development Zone), and 5 county-level cities (Gongyi City, Xingyang City, Xinmi City, Xinzheng City, Dengfeng City) (Figure 1c). Zhengzhou features a temperate continental monsoon climate, and its natural resources, as well as scenic and recreational resources, are mainly distributed along the Yellow River and in the southwest mountainous areas. The development and construction of rural recreational resources in the city are primarily guided by such plans as the Urban-Rural Green Space System Plan, the Comprehensive Tourism Plan, and the Suburban Forest Park System Plan. Gradually, a spatial pattern has taken shape: the western mountainous areas are dominated by landscape types including scenic spots, forest parks, and traditional villages, while the eastern plains mainly take wetland parks and beautiful villages as the core landscape carriers. Nevertheless, several prominent issues exist, such as uneven resource distribution, inconsistent development levels, poor spatial continuity, and insufficient brand influence. These problems impede the formation of recreational clusters with scale effects and strong appeal, preventing the accurate fulfillment of tourists’ increasingly diverse demands. As a result, the value of rural recreational resources still needs further exploration. Therefore, this study selects Zhengzhou, a megacity with a population of over 10 million, as the research area to evaluate the development potential of its rural recreational resources. It is anticipated to provide a scientific basis for the development and planning of rural recreational resources in this region and other similar areas in the future.

2.2. Data Sources and Processing

The basic datasets used in this study mainly include areas of interest (AOI) data of green recreational spots, land use data, digital elevation model (DEM) data, water body data, road network data, administrative village point data, administrative boundary vector data, social and economic development data of Zhengzhou, the overall national land space plan of Zhengzhou, and the comprehensive rural revitalization plan. The data sources are shown in

Table 1. Sources of the datasets used in this study.

Data	Sources
Areas of Interest (AOI) data of recreational spots	Baidu Maps Open Platform (2023)
Land use data (10 m resolution)	2023 Dynamic World V1 product accessed via the Google Earth Engine platform [34]
Digital Elevation Model (DEM) data (SRTM, 30 m resolution)	National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) of the United States and the National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA) “http://srtm.csi.cgiar.org/srtmdata/ (accessed on 15 March 2025)”
Comprehensive Rural Revitalization Plan	2023 Open Street Map “https://www.openstreetmap.org/ (accessed on 20 April 2024)”
Road network
Administrative village point data	National Bureau of Statistics of China (2023) “http://www.stats.gov.cn/ (accessed on 1 March 2024)”
Administrative boundary vector data	Henan Province: the Guihuayun website “http://guihuayun.com/ (accessed on 24 March 2025)”; Zhengzhou City: The Third National Land Survey; the Village-level: the Scientific Data Registration and Publication System of the Geographic Remote Sensing Ecological Network “http://www.gisrs.cn/ (accessed on 20 February 2025)”
Social and economic development data of Zhengzhou	Zhengzhou Statistical Yearbook, the official website of the Zhengzhou Municipal Government
the Overall National Land Space Plan of Zhengzhou

. Figure 2 presents the distribution of the three recreation resources (natural resources, historical and cultural resources, and village resources). Referring to the classification standard for urban green spaces in China, the AOI data is categorized into 11 distinct types, including comprehensive parks, community parks, theme parks, small gardens, scenic areas, forest parks, wetland parks, suburban parks, heritage parks, and others. A total of 350 spots with green outdoor recreation as their basic function were identified. They were further categorized into urban areas and rural areas based on their locations (

Table 2. Types, quantities and scales of urban and rural green outdoor recreation spots.

Urban Area				Rural Areas
Type	Number	Area/km2	Mean Area/km2	Type	Number	Area/km2	Mean Area/km2
Park	46	49.89	1.08	Scenic spot	35	226.64	6.48
Community park	56	1.99	0.04	Country park	18	23.22	1.29
Specialized park	108	37.40	0.35	Forest park	9	16.95	1.88
Small park	49	0.34	0.01	Wetland park	4	3.07	0.77
Other recreational attractions	3	1.71	0.43	Heritage park	7	0.62	0.09
				Other recreational attractions	15	6.93	0.46
Total	262	91.33	0.35	Total	88	277.43	3.15

, Figure 2), among which 88 are existing natural-type rural recreational spots. The land use data (10 m resolution) was reclassified into 5 types: green spaces (forests, shrubs, grasslands), water bodies (water areas, wetlands), construction land, farmland, and unused land (bare land, ice and snow). The polygon data of village residential areas was constructed using BIGEMAP 5.4.6.0 software. Based on the obtained administrative village boundary data and referring to high-resolution satellite images, the outlines of each village’s residential areas were manually delineated. According to the actual contours of geographical features, the polygon data of residential areas in each village were outlined one by one. The data sources of the village list are detailed in

Table 3. The type, number and source of selected villages.

Data Type	Number	Data Source
National Demonstration Sites for Leisure Agriculture and Rural Tourism	1	Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, National Tourism Administration
China’s Most Beautiful Leisure Villages	5	Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs
National Key Villages for Rural Tourism	7	Ministry of Culture and Tourism, National Development and Reform Commission
Traditional Villages in China	12	Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
Specialized Villages for Rural Tourism in Henan Province	60	Henan Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism
Famous Villages with Characteristic Scenic Spots in Henan Province	5	Henan Provincial Department of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, Henan Provincial Tourism Administration
Traditional Villages in Henan Province	25	Henan Provincial Department of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, Henan Provincial Department of Culture, Henan Provincial Department of Tourism
Famous Historical and Cultural Villages in Henan Province	1	Henan Provincial People’s Government
A-level Scenic Villages in Zhengzhou	30	Zhengzhou Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Film and Tourism in conjunction with Zhengzhou Municipal Commission of Agriculture and Rural Affairs
Most Potential Tourism Specialized Demonstration Villages	4	Zhengzhou Municipal Tourism Administration

, which were used for the evaluation of development potential. The social and economic development data, planning policies, and other relevant materials were primarily sourced from the Zhengzhou Statistical Yearbook, along with policy provisions and planning schemes published on the official website of the Zhengzhou Municipal Government.

2.3. Evaluation Methodology

The evaluation of the development potential of rural recreational resources can be conducted categorically and in phases. First, identify the rural recreational resources with development potential by category. Second, construct an evaluation index system for each category to assess their development potential. Finally, determine their development priority based on the contribution of the selected potential sites to the connectivity of the overall recreational network. The overall research idea and framework are presented in Figure 3.

2.3.1. Evaluation Method for the Development Potential of Natural Rural Recreation Resources

Drawing on previous research findings [35,36,37], seven indicators that affect the site selection of potential natural rural recreational spots were selected for comprehensive calculation. Areas with higher composite scores are considered to possess greater development potential. Among these indicators, land use type is the most critical. From the perspective of integrating ecological and recreational functions [38], potential natural rural recreational spots should be prioritized for site selection in green spaces or near water areas [39]. The indicator of “distance to major roads” mainly affects the accessibility of the proposed potential spots. The closer the distance to major roads, the higher the accessibility for residents to participate in recreational activities, and thus the greater the development potential. The third indicator is “distance to existing recreational spots”. The closer it is to existing recreational spots, the stronger the radiating effect and spillover effect, leading to a higher possibility of development. The fourth indicator is “distance to residential areas” [40]. The closer a location is to residential areas, the more stable and sufficient the source of tourists will be, resulting in greater development potential. The fifth indicator is “distance to river systems”. Based on humans’ affinity for water and the riparian characteristics of vegetation, areas closer to river systems are more appealing to tourists, and the natural vegetation on both banks also has stronger growth potential. The last two indicators are slope and elevation. In areas with gentle slopes and low terrain, the construction investment cost is lower, which is favorable for enhancing development potential. The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was adopted to assign weights to the above indicators (

Table 4. Evaluation indicator system for site selection of potential natural-type rural recreation spots.

Selection Criteria	Site Selection Potential Score					Weight
	5	4	3	2	1
Land use type	Green space	Water body	Unutilized land	Construction land	Farmland	0.4165
Distance from the main road (m)	≤300	300–500	500–1000	1000–3000	>3000	0.2162
Distance from existing recreational attractions (m)	≤1000	1000–3000	3000–6000	6000–9000	>9000	0.1409
Distance from the residential area (m)	≤50	50–100	100–150	150–200	>200	0.0918
Distance from the river water system (m)	≤300	300–500	500–1000	1000–3000	>3000	0.0591
Slope (°)	≤10	10–20	20–30	30–40	>40	0.0425
Elevation (m)	≤200	200–500	500–800	800–1000	>1000	0.0330

). The consistency ratio $\mathit{CR}=0.0260$, ${\mathit{\lambda }}_{\mathit{max}}=7.2118$, which passed the consistency test. Subsequently, combined with high-resolution images and other basic materials, potential natural-type rural recreational spots suitable for development and construction were identified in areas with high potential.

2.3.2. Evaluation Method for the Development Potential of Historical and Cultural Rural Recreational Resources

Based on the point of interest (POI) and area of interest (AOI) data of existing recreational spots, along with high-resolution remote sensing images from the BIGEMAP platform, areas with historical and cultural relics that are inadequately developed and rationally utilized were identified as potential historical and cultural recreational resources. Drawing on previous studies [41], the feasibility of developing these resources into rural recreational spots was analyzed from the perspectives of their spatial distribution, development status, and surrounding environment [42]. Public interest and demands for these resources were understood through tourists’ reviews on open platforms such as Baidu Maps. For the potential evaluation of historical and cultural rural recreational resource sites, four indicators, namely distance to major roads, distance to the central urban area, distance to residential areas, and distance to existing scenic spots, were selected from four dimensions: accessibility, service capacity, proximity, and agglomeration. The distance thresholds for “distance from main road, central urban area, and current recreation sites” were set according to the convenience of tourists traveling beyond the city and the maximum travel distances achievable through various modes of transportation [43]. Subsequently, the three types of distance thresholds (3 km on foot, 10 km by bike, 30 km by car) were divided into four levels with equal intervals. The distance threshold for “distance from the residential area” was set according to the daily recreational walking distance of residents [44]. The combination weighting method integrating the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Entropy Weight Method (EWM) was adopted to determine the indicator weights [45], and the comprehensive weight of each indicator was calculated (

Table 5. The weight value of evaluation indicators for the development potential of historical and cultural recreation resources.

Goal Level	Weight	Index Level	Weights by AHP	Weights by EWM	Comprehensive Weights
The potential for development of historical and cultural recreational resources	1	Distance from the main road	0.4554	0.1986	0.3270
		Distance from the central urban area	0.1409	0.4926	0.3168
		Distance from the residential area	0.2628	0.1308	0.1968
		Distance from existing recreational attractions	0.1409	0.1780	0.1595

). For the AHP, the consistency ratio $\mathrm{CR}=0.0038$, ${\lambda }_{\max }=4.0104$, which passed the consistency test. The specific setting of the evaluation index system is shown in

Table 6. Evaluation indicator system for the development potential of historical and cultural recreation resources.

Goal Level	Weight	Index Level	Weight	Grading Standard	Score
The potential for development of historical and cultural recreational resources	1	Distance from the main road	0.3270	≤1 km	4
				1–2 km	3
				2–3 km	2
				>3 km	1
		Distance from the central urban area	0.3168	≤10 km	4
				10–20 km	3
				20–30 km	2
				>30 km	1
		Distance from the residential area	0.1968	≤0.2 km	4
				0.2–0.4 km	3
				0.4–0.8 km	2
				>0.8 km	1
		Distance from outdoor recreational areas	0.1595	≤1 km	4
				1–2 km	3
				2–3 km	2
				>3 km	1

.

2.3.3. Evaluation Method for the Development Potential of Village-Type Rural Recreational Resources

With the implementation of national strategies such as rural revitalization and beautiful countryside construction, villages not only serve as the homes for villagers but also can meet tourists’ needs for enjoying natural scenery and engaging in recreational activities. As a unique type of recreational resource in rural areas, villages are not only important carriers of human civilization but also can serve as stopovers along rural recreational routes. Titles such as “Beautiful Leisure Village”, “Key Village for Rural Tourism”, and “Traditional Village” reflect the resource endowments and recreational characteristics of the villages to a certain extent. Therefore, by organizing the collected village list data, villages with abundant recreational resources were initially screened out to conduct the development potential evaluation of village-type rural recreational resources. An evaluation index system for these villages was constructed by selecting 8 indicators, which are categorized into two major types: location conditions and supporting conditions. Among them, location conditions are negative indicators, while supporting conditions are positive indicators. The indicators under location conditions are ranked by importance as follows: distance to major roads, distance to outdoor recreational spots, distance to river systems, and distance to the central urban area. For the supporting conditions, the indicators are ordered by importance in the sequence of: current recreational spots within the village (to measure the resource base), area of residential areas within the village (to assess the village scale and development space), potential recreational resources within the village (to identify the presence of recreational resources such as leisure plazas, mountain landscapes, and rivers/lakes), and government support (to evaluate the capacity of policy funding and construction promotion).

The government support indicator can be further subdivided into four levels based on the administrative rank of the issuing departments for village titles and the relevance of these titles to rural recreation. At the national level, three titles—“national demonstration site for leisure agriculture and rural tourism”, like “China beautiful leisure village”, and “national key village for rural tourism”—are assessed and awarded by relevant national authorities. These titles represent the high attention and strong support from the national government for the rural tourism industry in terms of policies, funds, and publicity, thus being classified as national level I. “China traditional village”, which carries profound historical and cultural connotations and possesses special recreational value, is classified as national level II. At the provincial level, “provincial characteristic village for rural tourism” and “provincial famous village for characteristic landscape tourism” are the assessment results of provincial government departments focusing on the development of rural recreational resources and the cultivation of distinctive features. These villages receive policy support and resource inclination at the provincial level, hence being categorized as provincial level I. “provincial traditional village” and “provincial famous historical and cultural village”, similar to “China traditional village in terms of resource type, focus on cultural inheritance and protection, and are classified as provincial level II. At the municipal level, “municipal a-level scenic spot village” and “most potential demonstration village for tourism characteristics” are evaluated and granted by municipal government departments. These titles aim to promote the integration and development of rural recreational resources at the municipal level, providing certain policy guidance and resource support for the development of rural recreation.

A combined weighting method integrating the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and the Entropy Weight Method (EWM) was adopted for the above indicators to calculate the comprehensive weight of each indicator (

Table 7. The weight value of evaluation indicators for the development potential of village-type rural recreation resources.

Goal Level	Weight	Criterion Layer	Index Level	Weights by AHP	Weights by EWM	Comprehensive Weights
The potential for development of recreational resources in the village	1	Locational conditions	Distance from the main road	0.2255	0.0349	0.1302
			Distance from outdoor recreational areas	0.1295	0.0255	0.0775
			Distance from the river water system	0.0754	0.0340	0.0547
			Distance from the central urban area	0.0487	0.0605	0.0546
		Supporting conditions	Recreational attractions in the village area	0.0487	0.5878	0.3183
			The area of the village settlement	0.1295	0.1799	0.1547
			Village-level potential recreational resources	0.2255	0.0251	0.1253
			Capacity of government support	0.1174	0.0524	0.0849

). For the AHP, the consistency ratio $\mathrm{CR}=0.0070$, ${\lambda }_{\max }=8.0693$, which passed the consistency test. The specific evaluation index system is shown in

Table 8. Evaluation indicator system for the development potential of village-type recreation resources.

Goal Level	Weight	Criterion Layer	Weight	Indicator Layer	Weight	Grading Criteria	Score
The development potential of recreational resources in the village	1	Locational conditions	0.3170	Distance from the main road	0.1302	≤1 km	4
						1 km–2 km	3
						2 km–3 km	2
						>3 km	1
				Distance from outdoor recreational areas	0.0775	≤1 km	4
						1 km–2 km	3
						2 km–3 km	2
						>3 km	1
				Distance from the water body	0.0547	≤1 km	4
						1 km–2 km	3
						2 km–3 km	2
						>3 km	1
				Distance from the central urban area	0.0546	≤10 km	4
						10–20 km	3
						20 km–30 km	2
						>30 km	1
		Supporting conditions	0.6832	Village-level outdoor recreational resource spots	0.3193	There are scenic resources	2
						No scenic spot resources	1
				The area of the village settlement	0.1547	>0.8 km2	4
						0.5–0.8 km2	3
						0.2–0.5 km2	2
						≤0.2 km2	1
				Village-level outdoor recreational space	0.1253	There is recreational space	2
						No recreational space	1
				Capacity of government support	0.0849	Country-level	4
						National I and II Provincial level I	3
						Provincial Level II	2
						City level	1

.

2.3.4. Determination of the Priority Sequence for Development

Based on the existing recreational spots and the screened potential development sites, and drawing on previous studies [43], the Graphab 2.8 software and the Minimum Cumulative Resistance (MCR) model were adopted to construct the recreational network. In the removal analysis module, the Integral Index of Connectivity at Delta level (dIIC) and the Probability of Connectivity at Delta level (dPC) of the entire network were calculated after the removal of each potential site. The weighted average of these two indices was used to determine the contribution of each potential site to the connectivity of the overall recreational network, which serves as a scientific basis for prioritizing future development.

3. Results

3.1. Analysis of the Development Potential and Priority Sequence of Natural Rural Recreation Resources

The analysis results (Figure 4) show that areas with high and relatively high potential are mainly distributed in regions with favorable ecological environments, such as Gongyi City, the northern and southern parts of Dengfeng City, the northern and southern parts of Xinmi City, and the southern part of Xingyang City. These areas feature stunning natural landscapes, rich mountain and water resources, and high vegetation coverage, offering excellent natural conditions for developing recreational resources. They are suitable for developing various ecological and leisure recreational projects, such as forest parks and suburban parks, to meet citizens’ needs for getting close to nature, relaxing, and taking short trips to the suburbs. Suburban areas of the city with convenient transportation have medium development potential. Areas with low development potential are mainly distributed in regions such as the western part of Dengfeng City, the central part of Xinmi City, the northern part of Xingyang City, and the southern part of Zhongmu County. These regions are marked by a large proportion of farmland, complex terrain, limited transportation access, and high challenges and costs associated with building recreational facilities. The northern parts of Xingyang City and Zhongmu County, located in the area traversed by the Yellow River, are distributed with a large amount of unused land, such as tidal flats. Due to complex geological conditions and fragile ecological environments, these regions have the lowest development potential for recreational resources. Combined with high-resolution remote sensing images, 30 potential natural-type rural recreational spots were selected in the high and relatively high potential areas (Figure 5). Specifically, there are six spots in Xinmi City, five in Dengfeng City, four each in Xingyang City, Gongyi City, and Zhongmu County, three each in Zhengzhou Airport Economy Zone and Xinzheng City, and one in Zhengzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone. All potential spots are located adjacent to existing well-known and maturely developed scenic spots, enabling them to not only leverage the radiating and driving effects of the existing spots but also play roles in functional supplementation and structural connectivity. For instance, the potential spots near the Fuxi Mountain Scenic Area in Gongyi can not only share the spillover tourist sources of the existing scenic spot but also enhance the connectivity and accessibility of the existing spot, providing citizens with more rural recreational opportunities.

According to the contribution degree analysis results (Figure 6), the potential sites around the Fuxi Mountain Scenic Area in Gongyi City rank the highest in terms of contribution degree. They are followed by the potential sites in the areas near the Songshan National Scenic Area and Qipan Mountain Park in Dengfeng City, the areas around the Shenxiandong Scenic Area in Xinmi City, and the areas adjacent to the Zhulin Longevity Mountain Scenic Area and Jiulong Gorge Scenic Area in Gongyi City. These potential sites can effectively make up for the gaps in the recreational network of the region and enhance the connectivity between existing scenic spots. The ranking of this development priority can provide scientific references for the construction planning of suburban parks in the future.

3.2. Analysis of the Development Potential and Priority Sequence of Historical and Cultural Recreational Resources

Based on the existing historical and cultural relics, 18 historical and cultural sites were initially screened for recreational potential evaluation (Figure 2,

Table 9. Brief introduction of selected potential historical and cultural scenic spots.

Names of Scenic Spots	Region	Scenic Spot Introduction
Yongchang Mausoleum, Yongxi Mausoleum, Yongyu Mausoleum, Yongtai Mausoleum	Gongyi	These are the mausoleums of Emperor Taizu Zhao Kuangyin, Emperor Taizong Zhao Jiong, Emperor Shenzong Zhao Xu, and Emperor Zhezong Zhao Xu of the Northern Song Dynasty. Their architectural ruins and stone carvings provide tangible material evidence for the study of mausoleum systems and stone carving art during the Northern Song Dynasty.
Shuanghuashu Ruins	Gongyi	As the central settlement with the highest specification and the nature of a capital city, it has filled the critical gap in material evidence regarding the key period and key region of the origin of Chinese civilization.
Zheng Zhuanggong Mausoleum	Xinmi	It holds certain value for the study of the burial layout of vassal states during the Spring and Autumn Period as well as the history of the State of Zheng in the same period.
Luofo Temple Pagoda	Xinzheng	Constructed in the 10th year of the Kaihuang reign of the Sui Dynasty, it is an octagonal seven-story pavilion-style brick pagoda, which holds significant value for the study of architectural history and religious history in the Central Plains region.
The Later Zhou Imperial Mausoleum (Shun Mausoleum)	Xinzheng	The Mausoleum of Emperor Gongdi Chai Zongxun, whose mausoleum complex and sacrificial steles possess considerable historical, scientific, and cultural value.
The tombs of the three Chen Dynasty prime ministers	Xinzheng	As one of the mausoleums of ancient celebrity’s native to Xinzheng, it holds significant value for the study of ancient Chinese social history and family history.
Zheng’s Merit Stele Forest	Xingyang	Located in Yufo Mountain, surrounded by mountains and rivers with beautiful scenery, it is a stone carving complex of historical celebrities and meritorious figures centered on the Zhengguo Canal.
Zhenhe Pagoda	Xingyang	Located near Xingguo Temple, it was constructed based on the unique natural terrain and is equipped with recreational facilities such as ornamental landscapes within the garden.
The tomb of Jiulin Gong, the ancestor of the Pan family	Xingyang	As the place for the Pan family to trace their origins, it is of great significance for the study of the surname culture of the Pan family.
Jiangshan Tower	Huiji district	As a historical building dating back to the Yongle period of the Ming Dynasty, it boasts profound cultural connotations.
Xishan Ruins	Huiji district	As a city site dating back to the late Yangshao Culture period of the Neolithic Age, it is of great significance for the study of urban origin.
Dong Zhao Ruins	Zhongyuan district	As the largest early-stage city site of the Erlitou Culture ever discovered in China, it, together with other Xia-Shang period sites in Zhengzhou, jointly nurtured the early Huaxia civilization.
Small Twin Bridge Ruins	Zhongyuan district	As a cultural site of the Shang Dynasty, it has, to a certain extent, filled the gap in the archeological research on the middle Shang Dynasty, and represents a new breakthrough in the archeology of the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties.
Shousheng Temple Twin Towers	Zhongmu county	These two hexagonal pavilion-style brick pagodas, built in the Song Dynasty and arranged side by side from east to west, hold high reference value for the study of architectural styles and art of the Song Dynasty.
Outer Gate of Government Official	Zhongmu county	Serving as the gateway to ancient military barracks, it bears the heritage of ancient military culture.

). The results (Figure 7) show that there are six sites with high potential, namely Zhenhe Pagoda, Zheng Clan Merit Stele Forest, Xishan Site, Jiangshan Building, Xiaoqiaoshan Site, and Dongzhao Site. These sites enjoy favorable transportation conditions and are relatively close to the central urban area. After development and construction, they will facilitate daily recreational activities for urban residents and can also form agglomeration effects with existing scenic spots. There are five sites with relatively high potential, including the Later Zhou Imperial Mausoleum (Shun Mausoleum), Wofo Temple Pagoda, Yuanmen (Yamen Gate), Tomb of the Three Chen Prime Ministers, and Shuangta of Shousheng Temple. Although these sites are inferior to the high-potential ones in terms of geographical location and transportation convenience, they can be considered for long-term development. Three sites possess medium potential, namely Shuanghuai Tree Site, Tomb of Jisun Gong (Ancestor of the Pan Clan), and Cemetery of Duke Zhuang of Zheng. Their recreational value needs to be further explored and developed. Despite their extremely high historical and cultural value, the sites with relatively low and low potential are in remote areas with limited transportation conditions and situated in farmland. In the future, they can be protected and developed in combination with agricultural tourism and popular science activities. When these potential sites are incorporated into the overall recreational network, the contribution degree analysis results to the overall network connectivity indicate that Xiaoqiaoshan Site, Jiangshan Building, and Xishan Site rank the top three (Figure 8), which should be prioritized for development in the future.

3.3. Analysis of the Development Potential and Priority Sequence of Village-Type Rural Recreational Resources

Based on the initial screening, 88 villages with abundant recreational resources were identified. Dengfeng City and Xinmi City have the largest number, with 19 potential villages each, followed by Gongyi City with 17, Xingyang City with 13, Erqi District with 7, Zhongmu County with 6, Xinzheng City with 4, and Huiji District, Jinshui District, and Shangjie District with 1 village each. The results of the development potential evaluation (Figure 9) show that 14 villages, including Sunzhuang Village, Yingtaogou Community, Shanglihe Community, Daluxi Community, and Madu Village, have the highest potential. This may be attributed to their significant advantages in natural resources, transportation location, and supporting infrastructure, which endow them with great potential and broad prospects for the development and utilization of recreational resources. There are 16 villages with relatively high potential. Although these villages may not have the same level of resource endowments or transportation advantages as the highest-potential ones, they still offer strong potential for development. Twenty-two villages have medium potential. Although their recreational resources have a certain development foundation, further exploration and integration are required to enhance their development potential. Twenty-six villages have relatively low potential, and 10 villages have low potential. These villages may face certain limitations in the development of recreational resources, such as insufficient recreational resources, high development challenges, and low transportation accessibility. Targeted policy support and development strategies are needed to improve the development potential of their recreational resources. The villages with the highest and relatively high potential were selected for contribution ranking (Figure 10). Villages including Beigaozhuang Village, Xinzhong Village, Shagudui Village, Yanglin Village, and Dahuai Village should be prioritized for development.

4. Discussion

This study proposes a research framework for evaluating the development potential of rural recreational resources, and Zhengzhou, a megacity, selected as the research area for verification. The results confirm that in the peripheral areas of metropolises, rural recreational resources are abundant and possess significant development potential. The factors influencing the development potential of rural recreational resources are even more complex and diverse. Among these, natural factors such as elevation and slope exert a more pronounced impact on natural-type recreational resources. Such resources are concentrated in low-mountain and hilly zones, which boast high green space coverage and favorable ecological landscapes. Humanistic (heritage and village) recreational resources are more susceptible to constraints imposed by “accessibility” and “transportation convenience”. Factors including their distance from the main urban area, proximity to major roads, and distance from existing recreational resources influence people’s travel frequency and willingness to participate in recreation [12,46]. These factors also determine whether an interconnected recreational network can be formed among sites, which is closely linked to the continuity of people’s recreational behaviors. Furthermore, multiple factors such as economic conditions, recreational preferences, and people’s perception of service quality at recreational sites also play significant roles [47,48,49]. The investigation of the development potential of rural recreational resources can further promote urban-rural integration in metropolitan fringe areas. These new rural recreation resources can bridge the gap between cities and the countryside and contribute to rural revitalization. This work is conducive to promoting the in-depth development and appropriate allocation of different types of recreational resources, adding more recreational routes, and establishing a complete recreational network. In the future, systematic planning and sustainable development of rural recreational resources can be carried out from the following four aspects.

First, all types of rural recreational resources should be identified and classified for development based on their different types and characteristics. It is necessary to clarify the advantages and characteristics of various recreation resources, evaluate their structural hierarchy and importance in the overall urban-rural recreational network. And then formulate a scientific and reasonable layout structure and development sequence by integrating the level of social-economic development and population distribution characteristics. For example, regarding natural-type recreation resources, emphasis should be placed on ecological protection and restoration to create ecological recreational spaces and construct ecological recreational corridors [39,50,51]. For humanistic resources, an in-depth exploration of their cultural connotations is required to develop cultural experience projects. With villages as carriers, traditional folk cultural activities should be inherited and innovated. Distinctive recreational stopovers should be built relying on these villages, to make them become the important nodes of the overall recreational network. By combining the overall planning of the urban-rural recreational network with classified and orderly development, a composite function of “culture + recreation + ecology” can be formed. This will provide tourists with diverse recreational experiences, promote the coordinated economic, social and ecological development of rural areas, and drive rural revitalization.

Second, based on the analysis results of the structural connectivity of the overall recreational network and combined with the demands of social and economic development, the development and construction of rural recreational resources should be carried out in a classified and phased manner in an orderly way. Priority should be given to the development of potential rural recreational sites with high contribution degrees and node degrees to enhance the regional agglomeration effect. For high-potential sites with convenient transportation, high accessibility, and relatively complete infrastructure, priority construction plans should be formulated and demonstration projects should be implemented. For resources with medium potential, efforts should first be made to improve their own quality and their connectivity with the overall network, and medium- and long-term development plans should be formulated. For rural recreational resources with low potential, it is necessary to continue exploring their recreational value, create distinctive recreational scenarios, strive for policy and financial support, and formulate long-term development plans.

Third, a themed brand cluster should be established, and rural recreational resources of different types and characteristics should be developed in a hierarchical and differentiated manner, with their scales expanded in an orderly way. For instance, with the “Songshan Mountain-Yellow River” ecological corridor as the main line, well-known branded recreational resources such as Zhulin Longevity Mountain in Gongyi and Huanchui Valley in Xingyang should be integrated to build the “Central Plains Landscape for Health Preservation” brand. Combining historical and cultural relic-based recreational resources with characteristic dwellings such as traditional villages, a humanistic recreational brand themed “Yellow River Culture, Root of the Central Plains” should be constructed, and themed recreational routes such as archeological study tours and surname origin exploration tours should be developed. With Songshan Mountain in Dengfeng as the core, efforts should be made to apply for the national cultural park, build the brand of “Songshan Mountain: The Most Serene Under Heaven”, and drive the development of surrounding regional or local-level recreational resources and other characteristic themes through its radiating effect.

Finally, network construction, integration, aggregation and synergy should be focused. Rural recreation resources outside the city should be connected to urban park recreation spots inside the city. Through the construction of an urban-rural green slow-traffic system or the operation of public transportation tourism routes, scattered rural recreational resources can be linked together. By means of classified development, phased advancement, brand leadership, and network coordination, scattered resources should be organically integrated and aggregated into overall advantages. Finally, an urban-rural recreational network featuring “ecology as the foundation, culture as the soul, network as the framework, and brands as the wings” will be formed. Ultimately, this will achieve the coordinated and win-win goals of ecological protection, cultural inheritance, rural revitalization, and urban-rural integration.

5. Conclusions

This study proposes an evaluation system and research framework for the development potential of rural recreational resources. Based on methods such as GIS spatial analysis, Graphab network connectivity analysis, and combined weighting, it takes Zhengzhou, a megacity, as a case study to conduct classified analysis and evaluation on the current situation and development potential of rural recreational resources around the urban area. The results show that rural recreational resources still have great development potential. Among them, high-potential natural sites are concentrated in the western hilly areas such as Fuxi Mountain in Gongyi, Songshan Mountain and Qipan Mountain in Dengfeng, and Shenxiandong Cave in Xinmi. These areas feature convenient transportation and high green space coverage, with the triple advantages of “ecology-transportation-landscape”. High-potential historical and cultural sites are relatively close to the urban area and should be integrated with urban leisure corridors. High-potential village-type sites can be prioritized as composite stopovers integrating “homestay-study-tour-folk custom” in the recreational network, while driving rural revitalization. According to the spatial distribution characteristics of potential rural recreational sites, a spatial development pattern of “one district, three belts, and multiple spots” can be formed in the future, including the “Western Mountain Ecological Health Preservation District”, “Yellow River Cultural Study Tour Belt”, “Ying River Pastoral Leisure Belt”, and “Southwest Homestay Cluster Belt”. This pattern has guiding and referential significance for territorial spatial planning and rural revitalization planning. The rural areas with a high forest coverage rate, convenient transportation access, prominent cultural value, and complete living facilities are important recreational venues serving the nearby megacities. In the future, their connectivity with the urban internal recreational and residential spaces should be enhanced. This is of great significance for any large city. In addition, limited by the available data, this study has certain limitations in dynamic evaluation, tourist preferences, and recreational themes. In the future, data on resource utilization and tourist preferences can be further collected to conduct in-depth research on the integration and connection between different types of recreational resources and themed routes.