Henan’s tourism sees strong growth during Qingming Festival

Henan Daily

Zhengzhou: With its rich cultural heritage and diverse attractions, Henan stood out in the national tourism market during the 3-day Qingming Festival holiday.

According to Trip.com data, Henan saw a 10% year-on-year increase in travel bookings and a 14% rise in hotel reservations during the Qingming Festival, ranking among the top provinces nationwide across multiple indicators.

Zhengzhou saw a 37% rise in total travel bookings compared to the previous period, along with a 10% year-on-year rise in flight bookings. The top visitor sources were Beijing, Xinxiang, and Luoyang.

Luoyang is experiencing a boom in its peony economy, with travel bookings on major platforms doubling compared to the previous period. The 41st China Luoyang Peony Cultural Festival has driven a 31% year-on-year increase in hotel bookings. Popular cultural attractions such as the Luoyang Museum and the Erlitou Site Museum of the Xia Capital have seen a spike in visitors, while new cultural tourism experiences like the Sui-Tang Luoyang City are drawing in younger travelers, with Gen Z (born after 2000) accounting for 45% of the visitors.

Kaifeng is embracing a cultural revival powered by Song Dynasty-themed tourism. During the Qingming Festival holiday, travel bookings to the city rose by 29% year-on-year, hotel reservations were up 37%, and ticket sales increased by 25%. The Millennium City Park, also known as the Qingming Riverside Landscape Garden, saw a 25% jump in ticket bookings after the launch of a “Back to the Song Dynasty” event , attracting a total of 330,000 visitors. Meanwhile, Wansui Mountain Kungfu Theme Park drew over 30,000 visitors in a single day with its immersive live-action martial arts performances.

According to the 2025 Qingming Holiday Travel Report released by Fliggy, per capita tourism spending in Henan increased by 11.6% year-on-year, while per capita bookings rose by 2.5%. Hotel reservations in the province saw double-digit growth, with car rentals and local entertainment bookings also experiencing significant increases. Meanwhile, outbound flight bookings by Henan travelers jumped 40% compared to the same period last year. Major source markets for tourism to Henan included Jiangsu, Beijing, Shandong, Shanghai, and Shaanxi.

Beyond traditional spring outings and flower viewing, new experiential travel trends are quickly gaining popularity. Fliggy data shows that tea-picking tours saw a nearly 20% year-on-year increase in demand during the Qingming Festival, while tours featuring activities like bamboo shoot and wild vegetable foraging surged by47% .

In addition to the crowded mountaintops, even the villages were bustling with visitors. According to data from Trip.com, orders for rural tourism activities, such as tea garden tours in Xinyang and spring outings in the outskirts of Zhengzhou, soared by 239% year-on-year. Meanwhile, the occupancy rate of rural guesthouses around Kaifeng reached 90%. (Chinese source: Henan Daily Reporter: Guo Ge Translator: Yang Jiaxin Proofreader: Ding Lan and Zhao Hanqing)