Augmented reality (AR) has moved into the spotlight of technological developments to enhance tourist experiences, presenting a need to develop meaningful AR applications. However, few studies so far have focused on requirements for a user-centric AR application design. The study aims to propose a method on translating psychological and behavioral indicators of users into relevant technical design elements for the development of mobile AR tourism applications in the context of urban heritage tourism. The research was conducted in three phases to generate a quality function deployment (QFD) model based on interviews, focus groups and questionnaires of international tourists and industry professionals. Key categories, content requirements, function requirements, and user resistance were defined for the identification of requirements. The outcomes of the study outline tourist requirements based on behavioral and psychological indicators and propose a method for translating them into technical design elements for tourist mobile AR applications.