Zhujiajiao Visitor Experience

A user research and service design project exploring how international visitors navigate, understand, and make decisions within a historic Chinese water town.

Role
UX Researcher / Service Designer
Timeline
8 Weeks
Methods
In-situ Interviews, Semi-structured Interviews, Behavioral Observation, Journey Mapping, Data Analysis
Tools
Figma, Photoshop, Illustrator
Scroll

Research Background

Zhujiajiao is one of the most representative historic water towns near Shanghai and is often included as the first stop for international visitors seeking to understand traditional Chinese water-town culture.

Unlike local visitors, international travelers rely heavily on digital information systems to plan routes and make decisions during their visit. At the same time, many visitors lack prior understanding of the local language, spatial structure, and cultural context.

This makes Zhujiajiao a valuable setting for studying how visitors navigate unfamiliar environments and build an understanding of place through both physical and digital information.

Aerial view showing Zhujiajiao's waterways, bridges, and historic town layout.

Research Methods

319

Groups

Independent international visitor groups interviewed on site.

562

Visitors

Total number of individual visitors represented.

访谈记录

访谈日期
访谈人
是否已录入
Visitor Profile
国家
团队人数
出游形式
自由行 / 跟团游
游玩时长
团队构成（年龄 + 性别）
Discovery & Motivation
从哪里了解到朱家角的？
谷歌搜索 / Youtube / Instagram / Tiktok / 朋友推荐 / ChatGPT / 其他：
朱家角吸引到他们的点是什么？
历史文化 / 水乡 / 传统中国景色 / 食物 / 其他：
Experience & Pain Points
朱家角游玩过程中遇到最大的不方便/问题是什么？
如想不出来，则提示 支付 / 找路 / 交通 / 餐饮卫生 等等
Visitor Journey
是否浏览了以下点位？
放生桥（Fangsheng Bridge）大清邮局（Daqing Post Office）城隍庙（Chenghuang Temple）和心园（Hexinyuan）课植园（Kezhi Garden）北大街（North Street）游船（Boat）
对于未游览的点位，没去的主要原因是？
不知道有 / 没意思 / 太贵 / 其他：
Spending & Payment
平均每人在花费了多少钱？是否有什么因素阻止他花更多？
餐饮
纪念品
票（门票、船票）
其他
餐饮消费问题纪念品消费问题
用什么方式付款？是否遇到困难
现金支付宝微信
是否办理了中国SIM卡？
是 / 否
Stay Intention
如果有一个朱家角的APP，包含导航、历史故事、美食介绍（图文以及语音），愿意付费多少？
如果朱家角游客适住宿（过夜），是否考虑？
是 / 否住宿偏向什么类型的？酒店 / 民宿
预算
Overall Satisfaction
满分10分，有多大可能推荐朱家角给好朋友？（0分为不可能，10分非常可能）

额外信息

Interviews were conducted primarily in English, with multilingual support in Korean, Japanese, and other languages when needed.

Visitor Profile

The study included international visitors from 54 countries and regions. Visitors aged 20–40 formed the largest participant group.

Most participants were independent travelers with strong self-guided exploration habits. They frequently relied on search engines, maps, social media, and travel platforms to plan routes and evaluate destinations.

87.7% of participants traveled independently, meaning their experience was shaped less by fixed tour routes and more by the real-time interaction between individual decisions and the scenic area's public service system.

图 3-1 调研用户来源地组成
  • 其他0%
  • 韩国0%
  • 俄罗斯0%
  • 法国0%
  • 美国0%
  • 英国0%
图 3-2 调研用户年龄分布

Research Highlights

Only 21.7%

of visitors explored more than 70% of the major scenic locations.

3.5 / 7

was the average number of major attractions visited by interviewed participants.

“Didn't know it existed”

was the main reason visitors missed key destinations, accounting for 67%.

Problem Statement

International visitors are not lacking places to explore.
They lack a connected system that helps them understand where to go, why a place matters, and how to continue their journey.

The existing visitor experience is fragmented across physical space, cultural information, and digital navigation. Visitors must independently combine disconnected sources while moving through an unfamiliar environment.

As a result, many visitors concentrate around a small number of highly visible locations and miss a large part of the scenic area's cultural and spatial experience.

Key Insights

Insight 01

Spatial Awareness Gap

Visitors struggled to form a complete mental model of the scenic area. Their routes were often compressed around a few central locations.

Insight 02

Cultural Meaning Gap

Cultural and historical information was fragmented or difficult to interpret, reducing visitors' understanding of why each destination mattered.

Insight 03

Digital Experience Gap

Navigation tools were disconnected from the scenic area's service and interpretation systems, making reliable route and destination information difficult to access.

How Might We

How might we create a connected digital guide that helps international visitors understand the overall spatial structure, discover meaningful cultural stories, and make confident decisions throughout their journey?

Design Opportunities

Reduce Spatial Understanding Costs

Help visitors quickly understand the complete structure of the scenic area and reduce the cost of getting lost or missing destinations.

Potential directions

  • Smart digital map
  • Recommended routes
  • Dynamic route planning

Translate Cultural Information into Understandable Stories

Help visitors understand why each location matters and deepen cultural engagement.

Potential directions

  • Multimedia storytelling
  • Short-form audio and video
  • Historical scene reconstruction

Support Real-time Visitor Decisions

Help visitors make decisions while moving through the scenic area.

Potential directions

  • Destination value prompts
  • Contextual recommendations
  • Integrated service information

User Flow

Zhujiajiao digital guide user flow.

Core Features

Zhujiajiao route map background
9:41
94%

Zhujiajiao Guide

Classic 2.5h Exploration

2.5 hours

Best introduction to water town culture and architecture

Stops

Fangsheng Bridge · Apo Tea House · Hexin Garden · Kezhi Garden · Jiangnan Tea House · Helong Art Museum

Personalized Route Planning

Visitors can choose from curated routes based on available time and travel interests. Each route combines Zhujiajiao’s key scenic, food, and cultural destinations, helping visitors quickly understand the area and select a suitable journey.

Map background
Fangsheng Bridge

Fangsheng Bridge

4.5
scenic spots
3.4km · 10分钟

Introduction

Built during the Song Dynasty, Fangsheng Bridge embodies the Buddhist principle of mercy. Locals would release captured fish here as acts of compassion. The bridge's elegant stone arches have witnessed centuries of devotion, connecting not just riverbanks but also spiritual traditions with daily life in this ancient water town.

Official Services

Certified Nearby

Cultural Stories & Integrated Services

Each attraction transforms historical and cultural information into clear, engaging stories that visitors can listen to while exploring. The page also integrates official ticketing, boat booking, and certified nearby recommendations in one place.

4:00
1
Fangsheng Bridge
Kezhi Garden
2
3
4
5
6

ZhuJiajiao Guide

Classic RouteStop 1 of 6
Walk 120 m to Fangsheng Bridge

Next Stop

Fangsheng Bridge

Stop 1
Stop 1 of 617% complete
120 m
2 min walk

Real-time Navigation Support

The navigation mode provides a clear and focused interface that helps visitors understand where they are, where to go next, and how to adjust their journey in real time.

Interface Overview

Complete interface overview for the Zhujiajiao digital guide.

Reflection

This project strengthened my ability to translate large-scale field research into a structured experience strategy.

Rather than treating navigation, cultural interpretation, and service information as separate problems, I learned to examine how they interact throughout the complete visitor journey.

The project also showed that improving a tourism experience is not only about adding more information. The greater design challenge is helping visitors understand the right information at the right moment and use it to make confident decisions.