Chongqing - As the May Day holiday approaches, Chongqing is gearing up to welcome visitors from all directions with over 600 cultural and tourism events, 78 unique experience routes, and more than 100 consumer-friendly initiatives. Embracing its identity as the "most tourist-friendly city," Chongqing promises all travelers a warm and engaging experience.
The Hongyadong Scenic Area is bustling with tourists. (Photo/Chongqing Daily)
The various activities include exhibitions, traditional opera performances, public concerts, art showcases, scenic area events, culinary experiences, rural tourism, and consumer-friendly offerings.
The city is enriching its culture and tourism activities and product offerings to meet the increasing demand for visiting historical sites and museums among locals and tourists. Over 80 special exhibitions, such as displays of relics from the Three Gorges and Ming Dynasty stone figurines, are curated across museums and art galleries.
These exhibitions are complemented by trendy landmarks, performances, local specialties, flower appreciation tours, tourism routes, and special events, providing convenient access for citizens and tourists to delve deep into cultural and leisure experiences.
Rural tourism is particularly appealing during the May Day holiday when temperatures are comfortable. Chongqing has crafted 30 exquisite rural tourism routes, focusing on intangible cultural heritage, flower appreciation, and ancient villages and towns.
Moreover, areas like Tongliang, Xiushan, Bishan, and Shizhu are integrating scenic beauty, culinary delights, cultural arts, and flower-picking activities to offer over 100 interactive experiences in traditional culture, intangible heritage, performances, nature, and technology craftsmanship, ushering in a new era of rural vacation experiences.
Various hot spring resorts will introduce micro-vacation activities centered around themes like "FUN," "Heavenly Gifts Hot Springs, Parent-Child Bonding," and "Warm Pond Boating, Spring Wind Chase," inviting visitors to indulge in relaxation and leisure.
Furthermore, efforts are underway to bolster mass cultural activities and stage art offerings.
Public cultural service institutions at all levels will host 186 cultural events, including literary performances, cultural lectures, exhibitions, and reading promotions tailored around the holiday spirit and intangible cultural experiences.
Notable events include the Sichuan Opera Charity Performance in the Dazu District, roadside music concerts in the Yuzhong District, and intangible cultural heritage learning sessions in the Dadukou District.
City-level theater troupes, venues, and new performing spaces will stage 230 cultural performances, such as riverside folk music concerts, symphony concerts, stand-up comedy, dramas, and experimental storytelling performances, creating a rich artistic atmosphere.
Classic performances like the acrobatics show Top of the World and the immersive drama Chasing Dreams: Dragons in Tongliang will run continuously for five days, while the red-themed stage play Chongqing 1949 will have four to six performances daily.
Large-scale acrobatic show Top of the World Show Version 2.0, created by the Chongqing Acrobatic Art Troupe. (Photo/Zhang Kunkun)
Moreover, over 100 consumer-friendly measures will be rolled out during the holiday season. Activities promoting cultural and tourism consumption and the "Chongqing Flavor 360 Bowls" tourism food consumer week will offer ticket and dining vouchers across various consumption venues, enabling visitors to experience Chongqing's culinary delights fully.
Additionally, the city will host its first low-altitude flight consumer week, distributing 10 million yuan worth of low-altitude flight vouchers, and launch the China (Chongqing) International Consumption Festival, featuring over 300 special consumption-themed activities.
Districts like Jiangbei will hold the "Dynamic Beibin" consumer season, while Jiulongpo will introduce the "Traveling in Jiulongpo at Ease" consumer surprise box. Various areas, including Fuling, Qianjiang, Changshou, Shizhu, Pengshui, and Wuxi, will offer discounts on scenic area tickets and hotel accommodations.
In addition, platforms like Meituan will offer consumer subsidies and group buying deals under themes like "May 1st Carnival," "Fun May Day," and "Chongqing Hotpot Map," while Fliggy will provide hotel subsidies for its "Thrilling May Day in Chongqing" special. Various themed play areas will be recommended, ensuring citizens and tourists alike can fully enjoy the holiday's premium offerings.