Analyzing the main content, current characteristics, and development trends of the study of ancient roads in China can provide a basis for rational planning and management of ancient road resources and promote the sustainable development of the protection and utilization of ancient roads in China. In this paper, the CNKI database is used as the data source, and CiteSpace and VOSviewer software are used to visually analyze the number of publications, authors, research institutions, keywords, and other information of 1 631 literatures related to the study of ancient roads in China from 2000 to 2022. The results show that: (1) The study of ancient roads in China is on the rise and is in the stage of rapid development; (2) More authors and research institutions are publishing relevant research papers, but there is less cooperation between them and the research content is scattered; (3) The research mainly focuses on the protection and utilization of heritage resources, construction of regional protection system, activation and development of traditional villages, tourism construction and management, etc. The Ancient Tea Horse Road, Ancient Silk Road, and Xiaohe Ancient Road are the research objects with great attention in this research field; (4) The research presents a research trend from “point” protection to “surface” comprehensive management, from theory-oriented research to case-oriented practice, and from cultural heritage tourism development to rural tourism construction management. The theoretical system of ancient road value assessment, the network of ancient road routes, and the construction of regional tourism circles may become the research hotspots in the future. At the same time, relevant research institutions and research authors should strengthen exchanges and cooperation according to their advantages to promote the depth and breadth of research.