Enhancing emotional responses of tourists in cultural heritage tourism: the case of Pingyao, China

ABSTRACTThis study aims to examine the interplay between heritage tourists’ experiences and their emotional responses, and to identify the mediating effect of Memorable Tourism Experiences (MTE), drawing upon the stimulus–organism–response (SOR) theory. The study was conducted in Pingyao, a UNESCO-listed heritage city. Employing a convergent concurrent mixed-methods approach, this study combines quantitative (questionnaire) and qualitative (interview) methods to collect data. The results identified the positive effects of authenticity, nostalgia, and sacredness on MTE. Additionally, the study demonstrated that under the mediating effect of MTE, authenticity, nostalgia, and sacredness directly and indirectly affect subjective well-being and destination image. Although the direct impact of sacredness on destination image has not been definitively identified, the indirect impact mediated by MTE is positive and significant. This paper contributes to the research on tourist emotions and offers practical suggestions for the development of cultural heritage sites.KEYWORDS: Cultural heritage tourismmemorable tourism experiences (MTE)subjective well-beingdestination imagedestination experience Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Additional informationNotes on contributorsS. Mostafa RasoolimaneshDr. S. Mostafa Rasoolimanesh is a Professor of Tourism and Director of Sustainable Tourism Lab / Centre for Research and Innovation in Tourism (CRiT), and Head of Research for the Faculty of Social Sciences and Leisure Management, at Taylor's University, Malaysia. His research interest areas are sustainable tourism, heritage tourism, community participation, residents’ perceptions, and urban sustainability. He has published widely in high impact journals. Dr Mostafa is an editorial board member of more than 20 reputed tourism and hospitality journals.Shiwen LuShiwen Lu is a PhD candidate in Hospitality and Tourism Management at Taylor's University, Malaysia. He has published in high impact journals. His research interest revolves around services branding, consumer behavior, travel and tourism marketing, and cultural tourism research.