Factory tours in China become popular travel option during Spring Festival
As China welcomed the Year of the Snake, a new trend in industrial tourism emerged, with an increasing number of travelers opting for behind-the-scenes visits to manufacturing sites rather than sticking to traditional sightseeing destinations during the Spring Festival holiday.
TroibNews 
During the Year of the Snake, industrial tourism has emerged as a novel trend in China, surpassing traditional sightseeing as a popular choice for travelers during the Chinese New Year holiday. Many tourists opted for behind-the-scenes visits to manufacturing facilities, highlighting a shift in vacation preferences.
Numerous companies are leveraging this trend by providing facility tours designed for visitors eager to combine immersive experiences with education about factories, production sites, and tech hubs.
Data from the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Economy and Information Technology shows that industrial tourism reservations topped 300,000 at eight locations throughout Beijing during the eight-day holiday from January 29 to February 4.
One of the favored destinations was Xiaomi's factory in Beijing, attracting those interested in learning more about automobile manufacturing. Visitors had the chance to explore the expansive 718,000-square-meter facility located in the Beijing Economic-Technology Development area, where they witnessed various stages of vehicle production, including welding, painting, assembly, and quality inspection.
Another significant site was Shougang Park, situated to the west of Beijing. Once representative of China's industrial steel legacy, this revitalized 8.63-square-kilometer area now hosts numerous annual events. In 2024, Shougang Park welcomed over 13 million visitors, generating revenue of 5.8 billion yuan.
Across the country, other companies are also harnessing the appeal of industrial tourism. For instance, Yili, a prominent dairy corporation located in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, offers an in-depth exploration of China's modern dairy industry and its production processes. Since its opening in 2005, Yili Group has attracted nearly 3 billion visitors.
This newfound enthusiasm for industrial tourism aligns with a record-breaking travel wave during the recent Chinese New Year, with over 2.3 billion passenger trips reported by the Ministry of Transportation.
In anticipation of further growth, China plans to introduce two additional public holidays in 2025: an extra day for the Spring Festival and one for the May Labor Day holiday.
James del Carmen contributed to this report for TROIB News
Numerous companies are leveraging this trend by providing facility tours designed for visitors eager to combine immersive experiences with education about factories, production sites, and tech hubs.
Data from the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Economy and Information Technology shows that industrial tourism reservations topped 300,000 at eight locations throughout Beijing during the eight-day holiday from January 29 to February 4.
One of the favored destinations was Xiaomi's factory in Beijing, attracting those interested in learning more about automobile manufacturing. Visitors had the chance to explore the expansive 718,000-square-meter facility located in the Beijing Economic-Technology Development area, where they witnessed various stages of vehicle production, including welding, painting, assembly, and quality inspection.
Another significant site was Shougang Park, situated to the west of Beijing. Once representative of China's industrial steel legacy, this revitalized 8.63-square-kilometer area now hosts numerous annual events. In 2024, Shougang Park welcomed over 13 million visitors, generating revenue of 5.8 billion yuan.
Across the country, other companies are also harnessing the appeal of industrial tourism. For instance, Yili, a prominent dairy corporation located in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, offers an in-depth exploration of China's modern dairy industry and its production processes. Since its opening in 2005, Yili Group has attracted nearly 3 billion visitors.
This newfound enthusiasm for industrial tourism aligns with a record-breaking travel wave during the recent Chinese New Year, with over 2.3 billion passenger trips reported by the Ministry of Transportation.
In anticipation of further growth, China plans to introduce two additional public holidays in 2025: an extra day for the Spring Festival and one for the May Labor Day holiday.
James del Carmen contributed to this report for TROIB News
