This paper explores the impact of low-carbon service operations on responsible tourist
behavior within sustainable cultural tourism. A proposed conceptual framework is used to examine
this largely ignored situation through the case study of Xiao Liuqiu Island. The small island in Taiwan
reveals a previously understudied phenomenon in sustainable island tourism. The psychological
processes connecting cultural and cross-cultural experiences with sustainable tourism are explored
using primary and secondary data collected through in-depth interviews of domestic tourists and
online reviews of foreign tourists, respectively. Data analysis reveals the significant result that
sustainable island tourism comprises two important elements: a supply and a demand side of
a destination. The supply side describes low-carbon service operations—which include food, lodging,
and ecological tourist activities—while the demand side reflects tourist behaviors—expressed through
cognition, emotion, and motivation as well as authenticity. In addition, this paper makes an important
contribution to management by emphasizing the need for careful attention to tourism psychology,
particularly in natural and ecological environments that use tourism as a marketing strategy in
cultural ecosystems services (CES).
