To protect the environment, promote sustainable tourism, and enhance the quality and efficiency of the tourism industry, accounting for and identifying the ecological efficiency of tourism is crucial. In this study, we constructed a scientific measurement system for assessing the ecological efficiency of tourism in Huangshan City from 2011 to 2022 using a Super-SBM (slack-based measure) model and a Tobit regression model. Our findings revealed the following: (1) The overall trend in the total efficiency in Huangshan City fluctuated considerably during the period under study but demonstrated an overall positive trend of development. Scale efficiency mostly showed consistent annual improvement, while pure technical efficiency remained relatively stable. (2) Economic, social, environmental, and human-resource- and transportation-related factors all exerted significant positive influences on the ecological efficiency of tourism in Huangshan City. Based on these results, in aiming to enhance the ecological efficiency of tourism in Huangshan City, comprehensively considering multiple factors, such as the economy, society, the environment, human resources, and transportation, is recommended. Attention should be paid to balancing industrial expansion with technological innovation while simultaneously investing in the development of education and human resources. Emphasis should also be placed on protecting and improving the environment alongside efforts to improve capabilities in technological innovation and the level of management. The research findings presented in this article offer a valuable theoretical underpinning, as well as practical guidance for Huangshan City and other representative tourist destinations on how they can enhance the efficiency of their tourism ecosystems, thereby facilitating high-quality and sustainable development within the tourism industry.
