https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85148724534&doi=10.1016%2fj.jdmm.2023.100764&partnerID=40&md5=ba79284529b8cccf8c292fccd938ca1d

10.1016/j.jdmm.2023.100764

Modern cities are facing an identity crisis, and planners are seeking solutions by highlighting differences between cities. Intangible cultural heritage (ICH), which provides a ‘cultural soul’, can create featured places and specific senses in a city. Based on place making and destination image theorizations, this paper used the Chinese city of Guangzhou as a case to reveal how ICH qualities can contribute to the distinctiveness of a city destination. This assessment uncovered several key themes: 1) ICH, as recognized by tourists, encompasses six elements and seventeen subelements; 2) ICH's importance and popularity are apparent when it accompanies most tourist destinations; 3) ICH enhances places’ roles in relation to cultural heritage, especially that directly tied to ICH, whereas modern places seem marginalized in semantic networks; 4) the sense of an entire city shows a significant linear positive correlation with sense of place from ICH; and 5) ICH-based perceptions enrich the diversity of travel experiences and reduce negative impressions of a city. These findings confirm ICH's role in solving the ‘placelessness’ problem and in creating a positive, unique sense of place.