Lesser-known attractions gaining in popularity

Driven by a growing appetite for slower, experience-led holidays, Chinese travelers are shunning crowded big city attractions in favor of quiet, county-level destinations, breathing new life into local economies across the country.

From exploring rural markets and picking tea to learning regional crafts and culinary traditions, travelers are spending more time experiencing everyday local life instead of racing through a checklist of attractions.

Data from online travel platform Qunar shows hotel and homestay bookings spanned more than 1,000 county destinations during this year's summer peak, with three-day or longer stays rising 20 percent year-on-year. While established hot spots like Yunnan province's Dali and Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region's Yangshuo remain popular, lesser-known locations saw the steepest spikes, with bookings more than doubled in Xingyi, Guizhou province, and tripled in the Xizang autonomous region's Zayul county.

"Tourists are shifting from conventional sightseeing toward immersive trips that allow them to experience local culture and lifestyles," said Wu Liyun, a professor at the China Academy of Culture and Tourism at Beijing International Studies University.

Unlike the increasingly standardized offerings at many popular attractions, counties can draw on distinctive ecosystems, unique folk traditions, intangible cultural heritage and authentic living environments to offer more personal travel experiences, Wu said.

Emerging destinations such as Zhenfeng in Guizhou, Tian'e in Guangxi, and Wuqiao in Hebei province recorded booking gains exceeding 150 percent this summer, according to Qunar.

The figures suggest demand is spreading beyond established county-level hot spots to places that previously struggled to attract visitors beyond nearby markets.

Spending is climbing in tandem with foot traffic. Non-local visitor spending rose 14.1 percent year-on-year in the first half of the year, according to data from online services platform Meituan. Out-of-town consumers spent roughly 58 yuan ($8.05) per transaction — about 50 percent more than local residents.

"County areas offer extensive natural and ecological resources and deep cultural heritage, providing fertile ground for new tourism products and settings," said Chu Zhaobin, deputy director of the Institute of Urban and Rural Economics at the Anhui Academy of Social Sciences, in a recent interview with Xinhua News Agency.

Those resources increasingly match demand for more personalized, high-quality and experience-led travel, Chu said.

The trend also reflects changing priorities among urban vacationers, who increasingly see counties as destinations in their own right rather than merely cheaper alternatives to major cities.

Chengdu in Sichuan province, Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou in Guangdong province were the top source cities for county hotel bookings this summer, Qunar said. Consumers born in the 1980s paid the highest average nightly hotel room rate among all age groups, at 526 yuan.

"More families want somewhere relaxed and safe, without crowds or a rushed itinerary, where parents and children can spend quality time together," said Yang Han, a researcher at Qunar's big data research institute.

Yang said premium county accommodations still offered better value than comparable properties in first-tier cities, while hotels set within scenic surroundings and distinctive local activities made visitors feel the higher spending was worthwhile.

Local governments and tourism operators are capitalizing on this demand by integrating natural landscapes with folk customs, agritourism and cultural heritage.

In Hui'an county, Fujian province, visitors can explore ancient coastal fortifications, learn stone carving and experience traditional fishing life. The county hosted more than 400 cultural, tourism and sporting activities in the first half of the year, welcoming 2.89 million tourists and generating 2.57 billion yuan in revenue, according to the local culture and tourism bureau.

Improved transport links and the expansion of self-drive tourism are also making less accessible destinations easier to reach. Car-rental bookings for self-drive county trips rose more than 75 percent year-on-year this summer, according to online travel agency Tongcheng Travel.

To maintain the momentum, nine central government departments, including the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, recently unveiled a guideline outlining 18 measures to unlock the potential of county-level consumption.

The guideline calls for upgrading commercial channels, fostering the deep integration of commerce, agriculture, culture and sports, and cultivating night-time consumption clusters and cross-regional travel routes.

Industry experts emphasize that long-term viability hinges on preserving local character. "The core appeal of county tourism lies in the uniqueness of the experience," said Ma Yiliang, vice-president of the China Tourism Academy in Beijing. "As consumers mature, standardized attractions and cookie-cutter replicas quickly lose their novelty."

Ma added that counties do not necessarily require five-star mega-resorts or top-tier scenic ratings to compete. Instead, distinctive cultural storytelling, preserved authenticity and reliable public amenities can effectively convert social media attention into sustainable, high-value economic growth.