Enhancing Sustainable Cultural Tourism through Augmented Reality Smart Guide Systems: The Roles of Service Quality and User Perception

Abstract

Cultural heritage sites that adopt digital innovation increasingly implement Augmented Reality Smart Tour Guide Systems (AR-STGS) to enrich site-specific visitor engagement by fostering interactive and immersive learning experiences, thereby enhancing the comprehension of historical and cultural narratives. This study proposes and empirically tests a comprehensive model linking perceived service quality, user perceptions, tourist satisfaction, and the overall tourist experience in AR-enabled heritage tourism, grounded in the SERVQUAL framework and the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). Travelers aged 18–55 who utilized AR-STGS to tour the Palace Museum, Terracotta Army Museum, Liangzhu Ancient City, and Summer Palace provided 658 valid responses. Service quality is highly affected by responsiveness, assurance, and empathy. Utility and simplicity strongly predict user perceptions and experiences, thereby supporting the TAM.