Chongqing - Cross-provincial travel gained ground during China’s recent Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holidays, accounting for 59 percent of travel activity on Trip.com, up 6 percentage points year on year, according to data released Oct. 8. Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Chongqing, Xi’an, Kunming and Nanjing led flight bookings.

Trip.com’s Top 10 Most Popular Provinces for Inbound Travel During Mid-Autumn & National Day. (Photo/Chongqing Daily)

Chongqing, a major transport hub in western China, also ranked 9th on the list of Trip.com’s Top 10 Most Popular Provinces for Inbound Travel During Mid-Autumn & National Day and recorded strong tourism activity. 

According to local authorities, A-rated tourist attractions included in the monitoring system recorded 9.1 million visits during the National Day holiday. The city recorded 3.66 million overnight visitors, including 23,579 inbound overnight visitors, up 34.4 percent year on year. Nighttime spending in Chongqing increased 5.4 percent during the holiday.

During the National Day holiday, the Jiefangbei area was crowded with tourists. (Photo/Cqnews.net)

Beyond major cities, destinations including Dali in Yunnan province, Dujiangyan in Sichuan province, Yangshuo in the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region and Shangri-La in Yunnan province reported double-digit year-on-year growth in visitor numbers, pointing to strong interest in a wider range of travel destinations.

The figures point to strong demand for long-distance travel and diverse tourism experiences. The consecutive Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holidays enabled some travelers to take breaks of up to 13 days, encouraging trips to more distant destinations. 

Hongya Cave Scenic Area was crowded with tourists. (Photo/Cqnews.net)

Tourists are moving beyond visiting individual attractions toward immersive experiences. Red tourism is increasingly combining sightseeing with education, particularly for families with children visiting memorial halls and revolutionary historical sites, while autumn travel is expanding beyond foliage viewing to encompass landscapes from mountains and plains to rural villages and cities. 

Meanwhile, nighttime tourism is creating opportunities for additional consumer spending, reflecting a broader shift in China's tourism market from growth in visitor numbers toward higher-quality experiences.

Travel patterns varied across age groups. Travelers aged 25 to 34 were a major segment of the holiday travel market, with younger visitors showing strong interest in long-distance trips, urban nightlife and live performances. Travelers aged 50 and above tended to favor major cities and health and wellness destinations, with Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou and Hangzhou among their leading choices, according to the data.

Inbound tourism also showed signs of expanding beyond traditional gateway destinations. Russia was the largest source market in the ranking cited by Trip.com Group, while visitor numbers from the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, France and the Netherlands also grew strongly. Shanghai, Guangdong province and Beijing were among the leading destinations for inbound tourists. Chongqing and several other provincial-level regions also featured in the data, suggesting that international tourism interest is extending beyond China's traditional gateways.

The holiday data suggest that China's tourism market is becoming more diverse, with demand extending beyond major urban centers to scenic destinations and experience-focused travel. For Chongqing, leveraging its transport links while expanding its tourism offerings and nighttime activities could help attract more domestic and international visitors.

(Zhou Sheng, as an intern, also contributed to this report.)