Holiday travel shifts to rural, industrial and cultural experiences

Long queues at famous tourist attractions are no longer the defining image of China's holiday travel season as more travelers seek immersive, personalized experiences beyond traditional sightseeing.

From county getaways and industrial heritage sites to museums and art galleries, China's tourism market during the recent May Day holiday showed growing signs of diversification, with travelers increasingly drawn to experiences that felt more interactive, immersive, and rewarding.

In Diaoyuan Village in east China's Jiangxi province, the holiday atmosphere was filled with the laughter of families participating in rural activities. Adults and children caught chickens and fish, harvested vegetables, and immersed themselves in pastoral life.

"No long lines, no crowds. Big cities rarely offer this kind of fun and relaxation. I wanted my child to experience the simple joys of rural life," says Zhang Qiongyi, a tourist from Guangdong province.

This experience reflects a broader trend in the rise of county tourism, as travelers increasingly bypass crowded metropolitan areas in favor of smaller, lesser-known destinations that offer a slower pace.

According to Tongcheng Travel, an online Chinese travel agency, bookings for travel products related to county-level destinations jumped 128 percent year-on-year during the holiday, outpacing growth in provincial capitals.

The growing demand has also spurred a supply-side upgrade. Counties are improving infrastructure and creating unique cultural tourism IPs, such as local cuisine, farm experiences and folk events, to offer distinctive travel options.

High-quality accommodation is rapidly expanding into lower-tier markets. Data from Tongcheng showed a 76 percent year-on-year increase in bookings for high-end hotels and a 92 percent year-on-year surge for homestays in county-level regions during the holiday, with some fully booked two weeks in advance.

This holiday, Zhou Junyu, a primary school student from Jiangsu province, marveled at the vintage cars and smart workshops in Changchun, Jilin province, which is widely known as the cradle of China's automobile industry.

"I love studying cars. Seeing the history and technology here is so cool," says Zhou, who was visiting China's leading automaker, FAW Group.

The company has transformed key industrial landmarks into an integrated tourism and educational program featuring automobile history, manufacturing processes, brand culture, and hands-on activities. Since July 2024, the tour routes have welcomed more than 350,000 visitors.

Jilin province is turning its industrial heritage into vibrant cultural attractions. It is not alone in China's latest travel trend, as once-dreary assembly lines filled with noise and machinery have evolved into must-see destinations for travelers nationwide.

Through interactive activities, science lectures and face-to-face discussions with engineers, visitors can dive deep into the workings of intelligent manufacturing.

Official data showed that by the end of 2025, China had 264 national-level and nearly 500 provincial-level industrial heritage projects.

The market size of the country's industrial tourism industry is expected to exceed 300 billion yuan ($44 billion) by 2029.

"Industrial tourism is a nexus where secondary and tertiary industries converge," says Chen Wei, an expert from Tsinghua University."As a strategic move in building a modern industrial system, it can fuel consumption, expand domestic demand and promote industrial science education."

Driven by rising cultural tastes, many young Chinese are now turning museums and galleries into social spaces. Zhang Yutong, a student of Shenyang City University who often visits art galleries and museums, is one of them.

"Among my friends, the most popular way to hang out is going to exhibitions," she says. "It offers a chance to deepen our bond. Exploring the stories behind the exhibits together and sharing our thoughts is much more rewarding than ordinary entertainment, and it helps bring people closer together."

"For young people, visiting exhibitions is a lifestyle that integrates socializing, leisure and self-expression," says Si Yawei, an associate professor at Liaoning University. "It builds a relaxed bridge for social interaction based on shared cultural experiences."

The trend is also boosting the cultural economy, as young visitors sample venue-exclusive food and drinks and purchase creative souvenirs.

Data from a joint report by Dianping, a popular review platform in China, lifestyle platform Meituan, and ticketing platform Maoyan showed that user-generated content related to exhibitions and museums grew by 24 percent year-on-year in 2025.

Observers believe this year's holiday travel trends point to a growing appetite for deeper, more meaningful and diverse leisure experiences.

Value-added tax invoice data released on May 6 by China's State Taxation Administration showed sales revenue in consumption-related industries rose by 14.3 percent year-on-year during the May Day holiday, while cultural services surged by 42.3 percent.

According to Dai Bin, president of the China Tourism Academy, the integrated development of culture and tourism will be a focus for boosting the tourism sector during China's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) period. Efforts should be made to create new cultural experience venues and novel tourism consumption settings for visitors.