A smart lens on the past

Profound transformation

The timing of this consensus was no coincidence. The global tourism industry is undergoing a profound transformation.

An Li, vice-president of Airbnb China, says travelers are moving beyond traditional "check-in and photo" tourism in search of more immersive experiences.

"The industry has entered an era where we compete not just on quality, but on creativity," she says.

Airbnb's data from just before the 2026 FIFA World Cup showed that more than half of bookings were made by groups of family members and friends, turning the tournament into a shared social experience.

Seventy percent of visitors to the United States for the event also planned multicity itineraries rather than staying in one destination, An says, describing the trend as "portal travel".

For heritage sites like the Summer Palace in Beijing and Petra in Jordan, this shift creates a delicate balancing act between offering deep, immersive experiences and preserving the very places people have come to see.

Ma Wenxiang, director of the Summer Palace, says her team has built a comprehensive digital monitoring system for the sprawling imperial garden, which contains 70,000 square meters of ancient architecture, more than 38,800 movable relics, and over 1,600 ancient trees.