With the in-depth advancement of the “Belt and Road” Initiative (BRI), the integration of cultural heritage and green tourism has become a key issue in promoting Sino-foreign humanistic exchanges and sustainable tourism development. Green tourism, which emphasizes environmental protection, cultural respect, and economic sustainability, has gradually occupied an important position in global tourism development, while cultural heritage plays an irreplaceable role in enhancing national identity and promoting cross-cultural exchanges. This study aims to analyze the BRI’s impacts on the development of cultural heritage and green tourism in countries along the route, explore the current status and challenges of their integration, and propose corresponding policy recommendations to provide a theoretical basis and practical guidance for tourism practices and cultural protection policies under the BRI framework. Adopting a mixed-methods approach of qualitative and quantitative research, it summarizes the theoretical framework through a literature review, collects data via field research, questionnaires, and in-depth interviews, and uses SPSS for quantitative analysis to evaluate green tourism’s effects on cultural heritage and its role in tourism sustainability. The results show that the BRI has effectively promoted their integration: green tourism projects in relevant countries have developed rapidly through policy support and infrastructure construction, providing new funds and platforms for cultural resource protection and inheritance, and green tourism not only boosts local economic development but also enhances tourists’ knowledge of and recognition for cultural resources, though some regions face issues like over-commercialization of cultural resources and insufficient ecological carrying capacity. The BRI provides new opportunities for their integration and contributes to cross-cultural exchanges and sustainable tourism, yet challenges such as inadequate policy support and unbalanced resource management remain; thus, policymakers should strengthen international cooperation, enhance community participation, and use digital technology to improve interaction between cultural preservation and tourism experiences, while future research could further explore the dynamic relationship between the two, especially how emerging technologies enhance green tourism’s sustainability and cultural value.
