Research on Developing an Assessment Scale for Tourism Experience Elements of Ancient Shu Road Heritage Trail.

Cultural ancient roads, known in Chinese as gudao, serve as heritage trails that carry historical exchanges across various regions in China. Due to their extensive preservation, wide geographical distribution, diverse thematic variations, and considerable tourist appeal, these paths have emerged as representative heritage trails, increasingly transforming into a novel tourism product experience that is highly favored by tourists and recognized by government authorities. However, research on ancient roads for tourism in China currently lacks a systematic theoretical framework, as well as relevant policies, regulations, and standards to guide their practical development. Therefore, there is a pressing need to draw upon international best practices and conduct foundational research to develop an experience element system that aligns with the perceptions, behaviors, and consumption characteristics of Chinese tourists, thereby advancing theoretical exploration in this field. This study focuses on the representative Ancient Shu Road as a case study and employs a mixed-method approach that integrates qualitative and quantitative research. It aims to construct a tourist-centric scale for the experience elements of ancient road tourism while analyzing the interactive relationship between these experience elements and tourist needs. This study addresses a significant gap in the development of indicator systems for domestic studies of ancient road tourism experiences. Ultimately, the study establishes a comprehensive scale that encompasses three core categories--trail resources and environment, facilities and services, and modes of tourism activities--along with eight primary dimensions: core resources, surrounding cultural environment, surrounding natural environment, tourism reception facilities and services, infrastructure and support services, information facilities and information services, and outdoor and recreational activities. This scale consists of thirty-two specific items, providing a robust reference for future research endeavors. Additionally, the study proposes specific development strategies related to key mechanisms, spatial configuration, and facility construction to enhance the overall development of ancient road tourism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]