BEIJING: China is stepping up efforts to encourage tourism and cultural spending as a roughly 10-day national holiday approaches, with more travel products, cultural events and consumer subsidies rolling out across the country.
A nationwide campaign, launched on Tuesday by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, will run from late September through the end of October, covering both the three-day Mid-Autumn Festival holiday, from Sept. 25 to 27, and the week-long National Day holiday, from Oct. 1 to 7.
Local governments in many parts of China are planning more than 20,000 cultural and tourism events and will hand out over 310 million yuan (about 45.9 million U.S. dollars) in consumer vouchers and subsidies to encourage travel and spending during the campaign.
This push is aimed at tapping one of the biggest spending windows of the year: the National Day holiday, typically the longest stretch of time off work for most people in China in the second half of the year, paired this year with the Mid-Autumn Festival, traditionally a time for family reunions.
During last year's eight-day Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday period, Chinese travelers made 888 million domestic trips and spent a combined 809 billion yuan, according to the ministry.
To build on that momentum, local governments plan to roll out a wide range of offerings this year, including scenic getaways, family gatherings, autumn outings, red tourism, study trips, nighttime entertainment and food tied to the country's intangible cultural heritage.
The holiday drive reflects a broader trend in China's tourism market, where travel is increasingly intertwined with entertainment, culture, dining, sports and other forms of service consumption.
The trend is also unfolding against a backdrop of rising cross-border travel. China's border inspection authorities handled 499 million inbound and outbound trips in the first eight months of 2026, up 8.7 percent year on year.
The momentum is expected to continue into the upcoming holidays. The National Immigration Administration has projected average daily cross-border passenger flows of more than 2 million during both the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday periods, with the busiest day expected to see over 2.4 million crossings. - Xinhua
