China Advances Culture and Tourism Development to Boost Well-being and Consumption

The Minister of Culture and Tourism stated at a press conference focused on people’s livelihoods during the Fourth Session of the 14th National People’s Congress on the 7th that cultural and tourism authorities will focus on the goals of building a strong cultural and tourist country, formulate and implement the 15th Five-Year Plan for cultural and tourism development, proactively align with national development strategies, and better leverage the role of culture and tourism in nurturing people’s aspirations, cultivating sentiments, and empowering economic and social development.

He highlighted the robust growth of China’s cultural and tourism market in recent years. During this year’s Spring Festival holiday, domestic tourist arrivals reached 596 million, with tourism spending exceeding 800 billion yuan, both hitting an all-time high. Last year, domestic tourist arrivals surpassed 6.5 billion, a year-on-year increase of over 16%, and tourism spending reached 6.3 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 9.5%, also setting a new record.

Culture and tourism have become an important source of people’s sense of happiness and gain, as well as a key driver for boosting consumption and promoting growth. Looking ahead, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism will take the integration of culture and tourism as the main line, focus on intelligence and integration, and truly cultivate the tourism industry into a people’s livelihood industry, a happiness industry, and a strategic pillar industry.

While the overall order of the cultural and tourism market has been sound in recent years, it still falls short of public expectations and needs. To address this, the ministry will focus on three key areas: improving service quality, strengthening market regulation, and upholding the bottom line of safety.

A "zero-tolerance" approach and strict regulation will be adopted against illegal practices by unscrupulous merchants, such as overcharging and forced shopping. Every violation will be dealt with seriously, with severe penalties imposed on offenders and resolute suspension of business for rectification where necessary. Special rectification campaigns will continue this year, focusing on false advertising, illegal solicitation, and forced consumption, while tourist complaint channels will be further smoothed.

A series of policies and measures have been introduced in recent years to promote the prosperity of the inbound tourism market. In 2025, inbound tourist arrivals in China exceeded 150 million, a year-on-year increase of over 17%, and inbound tourism spending surpassed 130 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of nearly 40%. Among them, more than 30 million foreign tourists entered China visa-free.

The popularity of the internet phrase "Becoming Chinese" reflects foreign tourists’ yearning for China. Efforts will be made to further promote China’s tourism image, work with relevant departments to continuously improve the whole-chain convenience of inbound tourism, and better establish the brand images of "Travel in China", "Shop in China" and "China Service".