This summer, cultural and tourism consumption was booming, and tourists' enthusiasm for travel was high. During the summer travel season from July to August, the national railway system transported a total of 954 million passengers, and the national civil aviation system transported a total of 151 million passengers. The surge in passenger flow not only represents people, but also consumption and vitality, vividly demonstrating the vigorous development of service consumption in my country.

Although the summer vacation has ended, the enthusiasm for cultural and tourism consumption continues. As a steady stream of visitors floods into scenic spots, commercial districts, and cultural and museum venues, a question worth considering arises: how to enhance the core competitiveness of the cultural and tourism industry and transform the seasonal "traffic" dividend into a "retention" advantage for high-quality development?

Deeply segment the market to enhance user experience

Industry experts generally believe that the "summer season" in July and August remains the tourism window with the most complete customer base and the richest range of scenarios throughout the year.

Analyzing the composition of summer travel "traffic," Wang Wei, president of Shanghai Spring International Travel Service (Group) Co., Ltd., said that from the perspective of core customer group structure, family travel remains the core driving force for this year's summer tourism market. He believes that market expansion is accompanied by structural differentiation, and the development opportunities for travel agencies are more concentrated in the exploration of niche markets and the creation of differentiated services. "The needs of teenagers at each age are different, and our corresponding study tour products should be differentiated accordingly. This greatly tests the travel agency's capabilities in resource integration, itinerary design, and service guarantee."

Data from Ctrip shows that this summer, the average price per family traveler was 1.8 times that of non-family travelers. Family vacation spending preferences showed two trends: significant growth in quality vacation products such as customized group tours and chartered bus tours; and increased popularity of experiential learning products such as museum-based classrooms, industrial tourism, and historical and cultural experiences. Meanwhile, the proportion of senior citizens traveling during the summer increased significantly compared to the same period last year, with travel preferences clearly shifting towards a "slower pace and longer stay," showing a trend from "tourism" to "staycation."

How to enhance user experience? Hu Junjie, Vice President of Shanghai Yuyuan Tourist Mart (Group) Co., Ltd., believes that the core competitiveness of cultural tourism projects that are "unreplicable" lies in exploring their own unique cultural resources and constantly expressing them in new ways. For example, by using new models and scenarios such as IP collaborations, performance exhibitions, and interactive experiences, people can have experiences, products, cultural interactions, and ultimately, consumption, which is the best closed loop.

Enriching experiential scenarios and extending the consumption chain

Today, people have increasingly diverse reasons to flock to a city: an exhibition, a competition, a movie, or even a delicious meal… But whether the influx of visitors can be retained and kept at the destination tests the destination's comprehensive operational capabilities. Improving supporting facilities, refining unique intellectual property, and promoting the deep integration of culture, commerce, tourism, sports, and exhibitions are essential to transforming temporary excitement into a long-term customer base.

With the summer vacation just over, the travel boom for the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holidays has already begun. This year, the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holidays are only three days apart, and the "take 3 days off and get 13 days off" extended holiday plan from September 28th to 30th has become a hot topic online, bringing new market opportunities.

According to data from Ctrip, as of August 25, flight bookings during the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holidays increased by approximately 50% year-on-year, while hotel bookings nearly doubled, with demand for quality accommodations being particularly prominent, reflecting a surge in travel enthusiasm. Looking at the platform's booking patterns, the willingness of travelers to plan ahead and book early has increased since the holiday extension window opened, with the peak booking period expected to begin in early to mid-September, during which demand for core categories such as flights and hotels will be concentrated.

The new demands brought about by the extended Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holidays have forced cultural and tourism enterprises to re-examine their products and services. Wang Wei believes that going forward, companies need to continuously segment, iterate, and upgrade their products and services for different destinations and target customer groups, replacing price competition with value creation.

“While tourism is booming everywhere, tourists still lack something to do. When they go to a place, they don’t really know what to do,” said Hu Junjie. He explained that Yu Garden is doing two things: first, providing a more immersive guided tour experience through large-scale language models and AI companionship; and second, leveraging its cultural strengths—this National Day holiday, Yu Garden will launch a new “dining show” experience at its Old Restaurant. “We want to ensure that every season offers visitors different things to see and experience.”

From "check-in style travel" to "experience-based stays," the growth of cultural and tourism consumption is shifting from "quantitative expansion" to "qualitative improvement." This requires the entire industry to continuously refine its products, services, and models to truly create year-round consumer appeal, ensuring beautiful scenery in every season. (Source: Xinhua News Agency)