From policy coordination to destination transformation: governance-enabled dynamic capabilities in Hainan, China

Purpose: Tourism destinations increasingly operate within complex policy environments where long-term transformation depends on governance systems capable of sustaining adaptation. This study develops the Governance-Enabled Dynamic Capabilities (GEDC) framework to explain governance-enabled destination transformation. Design/methodology/approach: Using Hainan, China, as a theory-informed policy case, the study interprets successive policy developments through sensing, seizing, and transforming by integrating tourism governance and Dynamic Capabilities scholarship. Findings: Governance enables destination transformation by strengthening adaptive capability through governance coordination, institutional alignment, policy integration, and institutional learning, thereby supporting long-term destination adaptation. Originality/value: This study introduces the Governance-Enabled Dynamic Capabilities (GEDC) as an integrative analytical framework explaining how governance links policy coordination with adaptive capability in destination systems, providing a mechanism-based explanation of destination transformation.