The paper reviewed 30 years of historic town conservation practice since 1986 of Zhouzhuang master plan and conservation plan, which led to the beginning of China’s historic cities and towns’ conservation and redevelopment. It clearly demonstrated the outstanding universal value and contemporary significance of historic water towns south of Yangtze River. The conservation and redevelopment patterns in the past 30 years can be summarized as three different orientations along time: sightseeing, leisure experience, and life authenticity. By re-thinking the negative effects of tourism and commercialization, and by re-understanding the coming era of cultural heritage conservation, it proposed that the way of historic water towns development with Chinese characteristics should based on long-term, multi stakeholder involvement, continuous adjustment according to specific environment, and persistent practice.%回顾了自1986年《周庄总体及保护规划》开创中国历史城镇保护先河以来30年的水乡古镇保护实践，明晰了“江南水乡古镇”所蕴含的突出普遍价值和当代意义，归纳了顺次出现的以“旅游观光”、“休闲度假”和“生活原真性”为不同取向的三个典型阶段。通过对古镇商业旅游负面效应的再思索，和对新时期文化遗产保护事业的新认知，提出古镇保护工作要立足长远、多方参与，建立常态化的过程管理机制，根据特定环境不断调适、积极实践，才是中国特色江南水乡城镇发展之道。
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