Aesthetic expectations often constitute the primary focus in marketing nature-based tourist destinations. However, academic research has insufficiently explored the disparity between tourists’ aesthetic expectations and the actual aesthetic quality maintenance in shaping satisfaction. Employing the Expectation Confirmation Theory, this study utilized structural equation modeling techniques to analyze survey data (n = 446). It proposed and tested an Aesthetic Expectation Confirmation Model to examine the relationship between aesthetic expectations, experiential qualities, and tourist satisfaction in the Zhangjiajie National Forest Park. The empirical findings show that aesthetic expectations have a direct, negative impact on satisfaction, while aesthetic expectation confirmation has a positive direct impact on satisfaction. Moreover, aesthetic expectation confirmation also plays a mediating role in the influence of aesthetic expectations and experiential quality on satisfaction. Specifically, aesthetic expectations indirectly impact satisfaction negatively through aesthetic expectation confirmation, whereas aesthetic experiential qualities have a positive, indirect impact on satisfaction through the same process. These findings offer theoretical contributions to the literature on forest recreation aesthetics and hold practical significance for the planning and management of destination aesthetics.

The recreational and restorative functions of urban forests are gaining increasing attention as people focus more on having a higher quality of life. While the rationale behind the spatial layout of urban forest parks is important, the real psychological perceptions of users cannot be ignored. This study has developed a structural equation model to examine the relationship between environmental restoration and psychological accessibility. Specifically, an empirical study was conducted on a random sample of visitors of the Yuelu Mountain, Central China, to investigate the effect of visitors’ psychological accessibility on their environmental restorative perception. The results show that psychological accessibility and the quality of experience have a significant positive effect on the perceived effectiveness of environmental restoration. Environmental attitudes indirectly influence the effect of environmental restorative perceptions through psychological accessibility and the quality of experience. Finally, comments on the development of green space planning in urban forest parks are also presented in this paper.