Qingming Holiday Combined with Spring Break Boosts China’s Tourism Market

“The mountains are shrouded in thick spring scenery, with exotic pines and strange rocks everywhere, and each step offers a different view. What’s more, children are free of charge — this trip to Huangshan has been comfortable and smooth,” said a tourist from Chongqing, who specially gathered family and friends to embark on a spring trip to Huangshan.

The off-season has turned bustling. This year, the Qingming holiday coincides with spring breaks in many regions, sparking strong travel willingness among tourists and upgrading the traditional short-distance spring outing into a lively “long-distance spring tour”.

Data from Meituan Travel shows that since April, the proportion of travel demand from other provinces has reached 63%. According to Qunar Travel’s big data, the number of children among tourists surged during this Qingming holiday, with the number of 13-to-18-year-old visitors at scenic spots jumping 3.8 times. Feizhu’s data indicates that domestic hotel bookings have increased by about 40%, while Tuniu reports that the number of parent-child travelers has more than tripled compared with the same period last year.

This year’s Qingming holiday is connected with spring breaks in many places, forming a long holiday of 5 to 6 days, and traveling with children has become the main theme of this holiday.

With children becoming the “protagonists” of the holiday, “knowledge-rich” cities with top museums, science and technology museums or super IPs, such as Beijing and Xi’an, have become popular destinations for study tours. Cities like Nanjing and Chengdu have shown an interesting “two-way prosperity”: they are not only strong source markets but also attract families from all over the country with unique IPs such as Nanjing Hongshan Forest Zoo and Chengdu Panda Base.

To accommodate the tourist flow, scenic spots in many places have launched “child-friendly” measures such as free tickets and free transportation. Nanjing, Suzhou and other cities have launched free bus rides for primary and secondary school students aged 7 to 16. Nanjing Hongshan Forest Zoo distributed 45,000 free student tickets and launched 16 parent-child study tour routes. In addition, scenic spots including Huangshan Scenic Area, Nanjing Dabao’en Temple, Wolong Giant Panda Center and Qingcheng Mountain have also introduced ticket reduction and exemption policies for primary and secondary school students.

Many tourists also chose urban micro-vacation, opting not to “travel far” but to “pay for experiences” near their homes.

At Kaifeng Wansui Mountain Martial Arts City in Henan Province, many tourists visited and took photos in Hanfu, enjoying an immersive martial arts experience. Real-scene performances and characteristic shows took turns in the park, and tourists actively participated in various interactive and emotionally resonant experience projects, unlocking unique fun through in-depth interaction.

The Qingming holiday coincided with the Luoyang Peony Culture Festival. In Luoyang Luoyi Ancient City, many tourists walked into Hanfu makeup shops, specially consulting about the dynasties of different Hanfu styles and customizing ancient-style restored makeup. They not only wanted to take photos but also hoped to truly feel the atmosphere of that era.

In Jingdezhen, Jiangxi Province, hand-made pottery DIY has become a popular holiday experience. Tourists can integrate their own designs into glazing, shaping and other links. Many young people have developed a strong interest in traditional crafts after completing the whole porcelain-making process.

Industry insiders believe that this year’s Qingming holiday, combined with the spring break, has become the first travel peak in spring this year. It has not only activated the spring economy but also provided a reference for the tourism market during the May Day holiday. Cultural and tourism departments and tourism enterprises in various regions should continuously improve their market competitiveness and product service capabilities to prepare for the travel boom during the May Day holiday.