Over the recent May Day holiday, just how popular was Anhui? On May 5, reporters learned from the Anhui Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism that, compared with last year’s holiday period, the province welcomed 10.5% more visitors and saw an 11.4% rise in tourism spending year-on-year—both all-time highs.

During the holiday, Anhui’s culture and tourism units introduced over 1,500 new scenes, products and business formats, attracting visitors from all over to the scenic Jianghuai region to experience Anhui’s unique cultural charm. Level-A tourist attractions across the province welcomed 16.866 million visits and generated 240 million yuan in ticket revenue. Among them, 5-A attractions alone received 2.087 million visitors (up 15 percent year-on-year) and earned 110 million yuan (up 16.4 percent year-on-year) in tickets.

New products ignited fresh interest. In Hefei, twelve new cultural-tourism projects opened, drawing 28,000 visitors to the Hechai 1972 Creative Park’s Yuan Xiao’ao Magic Bookstore to enjoy a blend of literary ambience and high-tech immersion. The Anhui Museum’s upgraded exhibition “Anhui in the Xia–Shang–Zhou Period” showcased relics from the Chu King’s tomb at Li Sangudui and ranked among China’s Top 10 trending museum exhibits, attracting over 91,000 visitors. The Anhui Art Museum debuted the “Xin’an School Digital Art Exhibition,” experienced by 30,000 visitors marveling at the Xin'an school’s timeless charm. In Bengbu, the full-immersive VR project “Meets the Classic of Mountains and Seas” intertwined regional lore with cutting-edge technology for an unforgettable experience.

New scenes activated new momentum. Across the province, venues blending national-trend aesthetics, cultural flair and tech elements refreshed the visitor experience. At the lakeside teahouse in Zhongmiao, Chaohu, folk music performances, Hanfu flower-pin workshops and handicraft activities welcomed 52,000 tourists. Wuhu’s Tianmen Mountain launched the “Tianmen Mountain in the Textbook” live-reconstruction project, hosting 60,000 visitors. In Chizhou, the Dawang Cave Scenic Area created China’s first digital light-and-shadow cave themed on Journey to the West, boosting attendance by 77 percent. The immersive performance “Hui Prefecture of Joy” upgraded to 19 shows daily, attracting 115,000 visitors (up 26.2 percent year-on-year).

New formats injected vitality. From flower festivals to travel photography, concerts and low-altitude flights, holidaymakers enjoyed personalized “poetry and distant places.” The inaugural China Xinjiang Folk Art Season tour stopped at Ma’anshan’s Caishiji and Wuhu’s Jiuzi Bay, immersing over 100,000 visitors in ethnic culture. Huaibei’s Old Power Plant Industrial Museum launched immersive experiences like Time Film and AI costume-swap, with online bookings sold out across all time slots. “Sports + Tourism” events drew huge crowds: the “Run in Jianghuai” Beautiful Countryside health runs attracted participants nationwide to enjoy scenic routes and the joy of movement. Trendy markets, mountain cafés and campgrounds proved popular: Ningguo’s Qinglong Bay and Hefei’s Luogang Park offered low-altitude aerial tours, while paragliding in Shexian County let thrill-seekers “walk on the clouds.”

New itineraries created additional growth. Skipping crowded cities, more travelers explored county and rural escapes. Province-wide rural tourism received 20.296 million visits (up 11.7 percent year-on-year) with spending of 12.3 billion yuan (up 14.6 percent year-on-year). At Huangshan Xixinan’s peak green season, 165,000 visitors experienced “painting-in-real-life” ecological scenery (up 26.9 percent year-on-year). Lujiang’s Shili Changchong Parent-Child Valley welcomed 110,000 visitors to enjoy miracle farms, petting zoos and valley cinemas. A monitored sample of 100 boutique homestays hosted 40,000 guest-nights (up 7 percent) with revenue of 7.304 million yuan (up 5.1 percent). Day-to-night village events—fish-lantern parades, lawn concerts, bamboo rafting, themed stalls, handicrafts and night-market cuisine—offered nonstop rural delights.

New services delivered new experiences. Local authorities optimized management and introduced guest-friendly measures to enhance the tourist experience. Over 30,000 volunteers joined the “Everyone Is a Welcoming Pine” campaign. Hefei’s Huaihe Road pedestrian street transformed into China’s first digital-consumption and AI cultural-tourism interactive district, with city mascot “Lu Xiaopang” serving as a digital guide. Tianzhushan Scenic Area launched a smart management system to better disperse crowds. The province’s first combined transport-tourism service area at Chengkan, alongside the “Wuyou Garden” open-air site, saw traffic grow 47.5 percent, becoming a popular “micro-attraction” and leisurely “experience zone.” In Bozhou, drones served as “smart traffic officers” and “delivery couriers,” directing traffic and dispatching food in real time. Hongcun’s upgraded “VIP Guest Mode” converted government canteens into “tourist cafeterias,” offering 10-yuan warm meal sets that won high praise.

Source: Anhui Daily