The research center is an independent scientific research institution under the management of the HAITC. It is mainly engaged in tourism education and research on sustainable tourism development, promoting the construction of Hainan International Tourism Island and the development of global tourism, and gradually transforming and upgrading to a think tank.

The research center will mainly focus on eight research directions including tourism education research, island (or coastal city) tourism research, tourism research in hot areas, Southeast Asia and the "Belt and Road" tourism research, tax exemption and tourism retail research, agricultural and forestry rural tourism research, forest and national park tourism research and health and leisure tourism research.