On June 3rd, Shangmei Digital Hotel Group released the “2025 Dragon Boat Festival National Small City Travel Insight Report.” The report shows that the popularity of small city tourism continues to rise during this year’s Dragon Boat Festival holiday. Cities such as Kunshan in Suzhou, Decheng District in Dezhou, Gulou District in Xuzhou, Zhangqiu District in Jinan, and Xiaodian District in Taiyuan have made it into the top five in terms of the number of fully booked accommodations.
This year’s Dragon Boat Festival coincides with Children’s Day, which has significantly increased the popularity of family tourism in small cities. The occupancy rate and revenue per available room for family rooms have both seen year-on-year increases, with the number of fully booked room types reaching as high as 1,868 times. The report also points out that small city tourism is transitioning from being a “value lowland” to a “value highland,” with slow travel and family tourism expected to become the dual engines of growth for small city tourism.
As young people pursue more diverse lifestyles, and with the growing demand for family tourism and the continuous improvement of the supply side in small city tourism, “watching TV at 2.5 times speed and traveling at 0.5 times speed” is likely to become a lifestyle choice for more young people and families. Slow travel in small cities is expected to become a new normal for an increasing number of people.
