The domestic tourism market during the Spring Festival holiday in 2026 reached new highs in both traveler volume and spending, with inbound tourism showing particularly impressive performance. Driven by policies promoting consumption in the service sector, companies along the cultural tourism industry chain are expected to maintain robust growth momentum.
According to a research report released by BOC International on the Zhitong Finance app, data from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism shows that during the nine-day Spring Festival holiday in 2026, a total of 596 million domestic tourist trips were made nationwide, averaging 66 million trips per day, representing a year-on-year increase of 5.7%. Total domestic tourism spending amounted to 803.483 billion yuan, averaging 89.276 billion yuan per day, marking a year-on-year increase of 5.5% and setting a new historical record. The combination of Hainan's customs closure and policy incentives fueled robust sales in duty-free shopping for island departures. According to statistics from Haikou Customs, during the Spring Festival holiday, customs oversaw duty-free shopping worth 2.72 billion yuan, with 325,000 people making purchases, representing year-on-year growth of 30.8% and 35.4%, respectively. Additionally, driven by visa-free policies, celebrating the New Year in China has become a global trend, with inbound tourism emerging as a new highlight of the 2026 Spring Festival.
The key points of BOC International are as follows:
The extended Spring Festival holiday ignited travel enthusiasm, with both the number of trips and average daily cultural and tourism spending reaching new highs.
According to data from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the nine-day Spring Festival holiday in 2026 saw 596 million domestic tourist trips nationwide, averaging 66 million trips per day, representing a year-on-year increase of 5.7%. Total domestic tourism spending amounted to 803.483 billion yuan, averaging 89.276 billion yuan per day, marking a year-on-year increase of 5.5% and setting a new historical record. The average spending per customer was 1,348.13 yuan, or 149.79 yuan per day, reflecting a year-on-year decrease of 11.3%. According to the Ministry of Transport, during the Spring Festival holiday, the cumulative volume of cross-regional personnel movement across society reached 2.81 billion trips, averaging 310 million trips per day, representing a year-on-year increase of 8.2%.
Several leading popular scenic spots achieved double-digit growth in visitor numbers.
During the Spring Festival holiday, among the top scenic spots, natural attractions such as Huangshan, Changbaishan, Emeishan, and Jiuzhaigou experienced year-on-year growth rates exceeding 10% in visitor numbers. Projects under Xiangyuan Culture and Tourism recorded cumulative reception volumes and revenue growing by over 30% year-on-year. Among cultural and tourism performance projects, the 11 productions of 'Eternal Love' by Songcheng jointly staged 580 performances, with 'Xi'an Eternal Love' performing 21 shows in a single day, setting new records for both the number of daily performances and visitor reception.
Hainan's customs closure combined with policy incentives spurred robust sales in duty-free shopping for island departures.
According to statistics from Haikou Customs, during the Spring Festival holiday, customs oversaw duty-free shopping worth 2.72 billion yuan, with 325,000 people making purchases and 1.997 million items sold, representing year-on-year growth of 30.8%, 35.4%, and 21.9%, respectively. During the Spring Festival holiday, the total sales of four duty-free shops in Sanya City amounted to 1.96 billion yuan, marking a year-on-year increase of 23.7%. Notably, on February 21, the total sales of the four duty-free shops in Sanya reached 242 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 214.5%, with sales exceeding 200 million yuan for seven consecutive days, achieving the strongest performance ever recorded during a Spring Festival holiday.
Cross-border Tourism: Visa-free Entry Boosts Visitor Numbers; Long-haul Outbound Tourism Gains Momentum
According to data from the National Immigration Administration, border inspection agencies across the country handled 17.796 million entries and exits by Chinese and foreign nationals during the Spring Festival holiday, averaging 1.977 million per day, representing a year-on-year daily increase of 10.1%. Among them, 9.514 million trips were made by residents of mainland China, reflecting a year-on-year daily increase of 10.2%; 6.969 million trips were made by residents of Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, marking a year-on-year daily increase of 8%; and 1.313 million trips were made by foreigners, showing a year-on-year daily increase of 21.8%. Among inbound foreign visitors, 460,000 entered under visa-free policies, reflecting a year-on-year daily increase of 28.5% compared to last year’s holiday.
From traditional Southeast Asian 'warm winter tours' to Europe's snow-themed journeys gaining momentum due to the Milan Winter Olympics, and to in-depth visits to niche destinations such as Russia’s Lake Baikal and Murmansk, outbound tourism exhibited characteristics of 'long-haul popularity and upgraded experiences.' Driven by visa-free policies, celebrating the New Year in China became a global trend, with inbound tourism emerging as a new highlight of the 2026 Spring Festival.
Data from the People's Bank of China shows that the daily average number and value of payment transactions processed by UnionPay and NetUnion for inbound travelers have increased by 78.10% and 44.33%, respectively. Pre-booking for Russian tourists entering the country has surged by 471% year-on-year, while South Korean tourists have seen a 95% increase.
Travel Characteristics
The extended holiday has expanded travel radius. Big data from Mafengwo shows that long-haul trips lasting over five days accounted for 59.6% of total orders, with an average travel duration reaching 6.4 days per person.
Cultural tourism involving intangible cultural heritage (ICH) and traditional customs is gaining momentum. According to Mafengwo big data, searches for 'ICH experiences' during the Spring Festival grew by 180% year-on-year, with post-2000s individuals making up the largest demographic, becoming the core group engaging in ICH experiences.
Reverse migration for the Spring Festival has become a trend, reshaping festive consumption patterns. Data from Qunar indicates that during the 2026 Spring Festival, 18% of passengers flying into first-tier cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen were aged 50 or above, including a more than 10% year-on-year increase in travelers aged 60 and above. Hotel check-ins for seniors aged 60 and above rose by 56% year-on-year, gradually reversing the phenomenon of urban depopulation during the festival period, thereby boosting high-end hospitality and tourism consumption.
Investment advice
During the 2026 Spring Festival holiday, the domestic tourism market reached new highs in both traveler numbers and spending. The inbound tourism market performed exceptionally well. Under policies promoting service consumption, companies along the cultural tourism supply chain are expected to maintain robust growth. Key recommendations include companies with high-quality resources, strong operations, and potential for external expansion: Lingnan Holdings (000524.SZ), Tongcheng Travel (00780), Changbai Mountain (603099.SH), and Huangshan Tourism (600054.SH); BTG Hotels (600258.SH), benefiting from the recovery of business travel and post-pandemic market share gains; and duty-free market leaders poised for policy-driven sales growth, including China Duty Free Group (601888.SH) and Wangfujing (600859.SH).
Risk Factors
Insufficient recovery in travel demand and macroeconomic recovery below expectations.
