Data from Hunan Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism showed that during the National Day holiday, 361 units including A-level scenic spots, rural attractions and cultural venues in Hunan province received 12,569,800 tourist trips, an increase of 35.92%.

361 cultural and tourism units see positive growth in tourist trips

A total of 107 provincially-monitored A-level scenic spots received 9,944,600 tourist trips in seven days, an increase of 38.08%; the scenic spots generated operating income of 1.698 billion yuan, an increase of 45.25%. The 5A scenic spots received 3.8498 million tourists, an increase of 28.6%; and the 5A scenic spots achieved the operation revenue of 550 million yuan, an increase of 31.82%.
Hengyang’s Nanyue Scenic Area, Changsha’s Lushan Scenic Area and Orange Isle Scenic Area ranked among top three in terms of tourism reception, with 630,600, 444,100 and 387,300 tourist trips respectively.

A total of 65 rural tourist areas received 1.5371 million tourist trips, a year-on-year increase of 61.29%, and realized operating income of 228 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 20.27%. A total of 189 cultural units (museums, memorial halls, libraries and cultural venues) received 1.0381 million tourists, an increase of 8.38%.
A total of 173 accommodations received 206,300 tourist arrivals, a year-on-year increase of 0.81%, and realized operating income of 105 million yuan, up 5.41%. The occupancy rate of monitored accommodation units was 75.02%, of which the occupancy rate of homestays and B&Bs reached 93.84%, and that of camping areas was 66.47%.  

Cultural and tourism consumption booms 

Different cultural and tourism products and activities have been launched in the province, and tourists were enthusiastic about traveling. For example, the immersive nighttime activities held in Hongjiang Ancient Trade Town attracted 95,180 tourists in seven days. The number of real-name reservations at Shazhou Red Tourism Scenic Area in Chenzhou City reached the maximum limit for days. Fenghuang Ancient Town launched immersive art cruise light show, which was the first night tour product with Miao culture as the characteristics in China.

The 2021 Hunan Culture and Tourism Industry Expo promoted strong resumption of cultural and tourism consumption. After the extreme projects launched in Aizhai Scenic Area, it has received 231,200 tourists, and the ticket revenue has increased by nearly 20%. After the activity of “Shaoyang people traveling Shaoyang” was launched, many scenic spots like Langshan Mountain B Line Scenic Area, Baishui Cave Scenic Area and Wugang’s Yunshan Mountain have seen booming business during the National Day holiday.

Tourists from inside the province have become the main force amid the regular epidemic prevention and control, accounting for 78.4%. Zhangjiajie has received more than 52,000 tourist groups, and 78.4% were from inside the province. Yiyang City launched cross-regional tour in the province. Short-distance self-driving tourists in Yongzhou accounted for more than 80% of the total. It’s difficult to book a hotel in A-level scenic areas and rural tourist attractions, and tourists inside the province became the new consumption force.

Short-distance tours get popular

Data from Ctrip showed that various places have seen a travel boom throughout the National Day holiday, and the number of well-known scenic spots in many places has reached its limited daily tourist capacity for many consecutive days. Changsha has become one of the most popular destinations for tourists from first-tier cities. Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Wuhan and Shenzhen were Changsha’s top five largest sources of tourists, while Changde, Hengyang, Yueyang, Huaihua and Xiangtan were Changsha’s top five largest sources of tourists taking short-distance trips.
Data from Fliggy showed that short-distance tours were still popular. Local and short-distance tours accounted for about 60% of Fliggy’s orders during the holiday. Meanwhile, nearly 70% of tourists were post-90s, and the number of Red tourism orders booked by the generation born after 00s increased by more than 80%. Changsha ranked among the top 10 in China in terms of destinations and sources of tourists. Hunan was the most popular province for Red tourism, and Changsha and Xiangtan are the top two destinations. And homestays in Zhangjiajie were also very popular.