Chongqing - As the sun sets over Chongqing’s iconic skyline, rooftops across the city come alive, transforming into leisure, culture, and commerce hubs. From rooftop theme parks to immersive drone light shows, Chongqing is redefining nighttime consumption through the rise of its "rooftop economy."
Crowds gather at Raffles City's Exploration Deck·Viewing Gallery to enjoy sky-high attractions. When night falls, thousands of drones light up the sky with dazzling formations like "The City of Eagles," "Rainbow Staircase," and "Face-Changing Opera," blending natural scenery, technology, and cultural heritage into a luminous spectacle.
"It's like walking through a dreamscape," exclaimed Zhao, a visitor from Beijing. "Chongqing truly lives up to its '8D magical city' name."
This file photo shows crowds of tourists and residents enjoying Chongqing's spectacular drone show. (Photo/Zheng Yu)
Since April, nightly drone shows along the city's riversides have become a regular highlight, attracting more than 1.2 million viewers during the May Day holiday alone. The shows boosted hotel searches in the riverside area by 40%, increased scenic spot revenues by 26.6%, and amassed over 1 billion views online.
Behind this surge is a new form of consumption—rooftop-based experiences that seamlessly integrate culture, tourism, and various industries. As high-rise viewpoints and skyline attractions capture public imagination, Chongqing's "rooftop economy" has quickly emerged as a winner in the evolving night economy.
Making nightlife tangible
Chongqing's rooftops offer more than just scenic views—they deliver immersive urban experiences.
From Raffles City's viewing deck, visitors take in glittering city lights, river junctions, and majestic bridges. At 9 p.m., the drone show begins, enchanting spectators along the river banks with scenes of cultural artistry and digital choreography.
Popular rooftops like Chongqing World Trade Center Sky Observation Deck 131 and observation platforms at WFC and "Eye of the Cloud" are drawing record-breaking crowds. These venues host dining, entertainment, and photo-worthy attractions. According to operators of Sky Observation Deck 131, drone show-linked promotions have driven traffic up by over 20%.
Rooftops as urban icons and cultural memory
"The popularity of the 'rooftop economy' is more than a trend—it's rooted in Chongqing's urban DNA," said Zhou Yaxin, founder of Chongqing TestBed 2 Cultural and Creative Park.
Zhou, a pioneer in rooftop development, transformed the park's seven rooftops into cultural hotspots featuring infinity pools, sky-view restaurants, and performance spaces. His creation, the "Love Rooftop," even served as a filming location for the movie I Belonged to You, turning the park into a national destination.
He sees rooftops as key to Chongqing’s upward urban tourism trajectory. Historically, rooftops served as social hubs in the 1970s and 1980s. Today, they offer prime views of the city’s layered mountain-river landscape—a hallmark of its world-famous nightscape.
Beyond aesthetics, Zhou stresses that rooftops play a role in urban governance. In mountainous cities like Chongqing, rooftop clutter affects the skyline more than in flat cities. Repurposing rooftops into vibrant spaces not only revitalizes the view but also enhances urban livability.
Promoting global skyline tourism and emotional consumption
Chongqing’s Raffles City Exploration Deck·Viewing Gallery recently joined the World Federation of Great Towers, becoming the city’s only member of this prestigious alliance. The move underscores Chongqing’s ambition to tap into international tourism networks and promote skyline tourism as a global product.
"Yuzhong District, surrounded by rivers and layered with high-rises, is naturally suited for rooftop development," said an official from the district. The district has invested in rooftop attractions like infinity pools, revolving restaurants, aerial swings, and sky bars, creating a new vertical lifestyle for residents and visitors alike.
This file photo shows crowds of tourists and residents enjoying the spectacular drone show in Chongqing. (Photo/Zheng Yu)
Despite rapid growth, Chongqing’s rooftop economy still faces challenges such as similar product offerings and limited brand identity. Experts suggest that future development must go beyond sightseeing.
"Today's tourists seek emotional connection and personal experience," said Luo Zibo, chief expert at the Yangtze River Tourism Research Base of China Tourism Academy. "The rooftop economy must evolve into a multi-functional social space, integrating sightseeing, food, accommodation, entertainment, and cultural expression."
He advocates a shift toward emotion-driven consumption, where rooftop spaces meet personalized, experiential, and aesthetic needs. This means creating interactive environments where economic, cultural, and tourism elements converge.
Zhou agrees: "Tourism is the trunk, and buildings are the trees. Only with strong tourism roots can the rooftop ecosystem flourish." He envisions a "cultural-tourism + industry" model that harmonizes and new buildings revitalizing the skyline from above while enriching the cityscape below.
As Chongqing pushes the boundaries of urban innovation, its rooftops are no longer just architectural afterthoughts. They are the new frontiers of consumption, emotion, and imagination.
(Han Yi, a reporter from Chongqing Daily, contributed to this report's Chinese version.)