Demand-Driven Market Segmentation and Cultural-Tourism Integration: Innovations in Elderly Wellness Tourism from Wenzhou

Under the dual context of population aging and the upgrading of health-oriented consumption, this study employs Maslow's hierarchy of needs as an analytical framework to systematically examine the demand structure and consumption decision-making mechanisms of elderly-oriented wellness tourism, based on empirical data from elderly populations in Wenzhou. The findings reveal a hierarchical differentiation in demand: 73.91% of respondents prioritize natural healing as their core motivation, while only 11.2% engage deeply in intangible cultural heritage practices, highlighting the superficiality of cultural experiences. Economic capacity and health status jointly shape consumption stratification, with middle-income groups (53.37%) dominating the market but exhibiting conservative consumption tendencies, whereas high-income groups demonstrate structural contradictions between their demand for cultural depth and the industry's underdeveloped supply. Further analysis identifies environmental quality (satisfaction rate 83.66%) and service professionalism as foundational factors in consumption decisions, while insufficient cultural interactivity emerges as a critical bottleneck hindering higher-level demand fulfillment. Accordingly, this study proposes a sustainable development pathway integrating ecological resources, cultural heritage, and community collaboration. It advocates for constructing an inclusive yet high-quality wellness tourism system through differentiated product development and institutional innovation, offering theoretical paradigms and policy insights for regional responses to aging challenges.