Southeast Asia Information Port (www.dnyxxg.com) – With the start of the winter vacation and the approach of the 2026 Spring Festival holiday, the domestic tourism market continues to heat up. Driven by the extended Spring Festival holiday, the cultural and tourism market is expected to usher in a new round of growth, with inbound tourism and immersive New Year experiences becoming the two core highlights of this holiday market.
The start of the winter vacation has simultaneously ignited a peak in Spring Festival travel bookings. The latest data from Spring Airlines Travel shows that, as of now, the number of bookings for the winter vacation and Spring Festival holidays has already exceeded the level of the same period last year; data from the Qunar travel platform also shows that, as of January 14, hotel bookings in popular cities during the Spring Festival have increased by 70% year-on-year, indicating a surge in market enthusiasm.
Inbound tourism has become one of the biggest highlights of this year's Spring Festival market, with "spending the Spring Festival in China" becoming a new trend among foreign tourists. The Spring Festival is not only a time for family reunions for Chinese people, but also an important window for overseas tourists to deeply experience traditional Chinese culture, leading to an explosive growth in demand for travel to China from many countries.
Data from Fliggy shows that in the past two weeks, bookings for flights to China by foreign tourists during the Spring Festival holiday have surged more than fourfold year-on-year, with Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Beijing, and Chengdu being the top five most popular destinations. Data from Qunar shows regional growth, with domestic flight bookings from Argentina increasing ninefold year-on-year during the Spring Festival, and bookings from tourists from European countries such as the Netherlands, Spain, and the UK all seeing more than double the growth, indicating an increasingly diversified source of inbound tourists.
A representative from Spring Airlines Travel stated that immersive cultural experiences have become a core demand for inbound tourists, with many overseas tourists choosing to travel to Shanghai to deeply experience the traditional Spring Festival atmosphere and the charm of Shanghai culture. During the Spring Festival, the travel agency will receive tourists from countries such as Greece, Slovenia, and Mexico, creating exclusive "Shanghai New Year's Flavor" experience itineraries.
The rich New Year's flavor experience continues to drive the upgrading of tourism market consumption, with comprehensive cultural tourism products and intangible cultural heritage-themed destinations being highly sought after. Data from Fliggy shows that packaged experiences including cultural performances, folk intangible cultural heritage, and distinctive cuisine are highly popular, especially catering to families with children. Bookings for integrated theme park hotels and accommodations increased by 94% year-on-year; bookings for tourism products including folk performances and intangible cultural heritage hands-on experiences increased by over 40% year-on-year.
A number of "intangible cultural heritage towns" combining cultural depth and experiential elements have become new favorites, attracting families and young tourists. Data from Qunar Travel shows that cities rich in intangible cultural heritage resources, such as Huangshan in Anhui, Jingdezhen in Jiangxi, Quanzhou in Fujian, Foshan in Guangdong, and Zigong in Sichuan, saw significant growth in hotel bookings during the winter vacation and Spring Festival: Huangshan saw a 1.7-fold increase, Jingdezhen and Quanzhou doubled, and Zigong and Foshan increased by 81% and 73% respectively.
Benefiting from the longer holiday period, travel demand surged during the festival, creating multiple travel peaks and making travel more flexible. Fliggy data shows that, as of now, bookings for Spring Festival travel products have increased by over 30% year-on-year, with the third day of the Lunar New Year becoming the peak travel period, with bookings increasing by over 40% compared to the same period last year. Data from Tongcheng Travel shows that short-haul outbound travel of 5 to 7 days remains the mainstream product during the Spring Festival. Some tourists are postponing their departure time to around the second day of the Lunar New Year, achieving a balance between "returning home for family reunion" and "going abroad for vacation," indicating a more personalized travel pattern. (End)
