The 2026 summer blockbuster film "Welcome to Dragon Restaurant" continues its successful run in theaters. To date, the film's box office has surpassed one billion yuan. The film's core scenes, including the Middle Eastern-style street and the Dragon Restaurant, were all built and filmed on location in China, sparking heated discussions among netizens and making the filming locations new popular spots for internet celebrities this summer.

Data from the Tongcheng Travel platform shows that after the film's release, the popularity of key filming locations such as Qingdao Oriental Movie Metropolis, Ningxia Shitanjing Industrial Cultural Tourism Film Town, and Qingdao Laixi has increased significantly. Among them, the search volume for Qingdao Oriental Movie Metropolis increased by more than 220% month-on-month, and Ningxia Shitanjing Industrial Cultural Tourism Film Town increased by more than 180%, which also played a certain role in boosting local accommodation and short-distance travel bookings.

Data shows that in the past week, bookings for Qingdao attractions on the Tongcheng Travel platform increased by over 30% compared to the previous week, with Sunac Land within the Oriental Movie Metropolis experiencing the fastest growth. Meanwhile, the Shitanjing Industrial and Cultural Tourism Film Town in Shizuishan City, Ningxia, a major filming location for the movie, significantly boosted local tourism consumption. Bookings for major attractions in Shizuishan City on the Tongcheng Travel platform increased by over 580% in the past week compared to the previous week.

The film *Welcome to Dragon Restaurant* tells the story of Xu Fu, a Chinese chef who travels to the Middle East to support his family and pay off debts. There, he partners with Ma Junsheng, the restaurant manager, to run "Dragon Restaurant." Suddenly, war breaks out, plunging the city into turmoil. Xu Fu, who initially only sought self-preservation, witnesses firsthand the suffering brought by war and sees displaced war orphans in perilous situations, leading to a gradual transformation in his character.

An article published on the official WeChat account of the "Oriental Movie Metropolis Film and Television Industrial Park" introduced that the core scene of the film, "Dragon Restaurant," and the Middle Eastern town where it is located were set up and filmed at the Qingdao Oriental Movie Metropolis Film and Television Industrial Park. During the filming of the project, the crew used 14 sound stages, including No. 6, 7, and 8, and 9 set construction workshops, including No. 202 and 204, to complete the construction and filming of important scenes such as "Dragon Restaurant" and the Middle Eastern town blocks.

According to the official WeChat account of "Ningxia Culture and Tourism," Shitanjing in Shizuishan, Ningxia, is also an important filming location for the movie. Xinhua Street, the film and television street, the former mining bureau television station, and Hongguang Market were transformed into the setting of a Middle Eastern town in the film after set renovations. Shitanjing covers an area of 356 square kilometers, with a built-up area of 7.6 square kilometers. The former "hundred-mile mining area" has long been successfully transformed into an industrial, cultural, tourism, and film town.

"Summer is the peak season for film and television tourism consumption. High-quality film and television IPs can quickly activate the tourism potential of niche destinations. The filming locations of 'Welcome to Dragon Restaurant' combine exotic charm, industrial feel, and niche characteristics, precisely catering to the immersive and personalized travel needs of young people. The film's popularity is expected to significantly boost travel demand in related destinations during the latter half of the summer," said a representative from Tongcheng Travel's hotel and travel business. (Source: CNR.cn)