China's factory tours emerge as new travel trend during Spring Festival

China ushered in the Year of the Snake with industrial tourism emerging as a new trend, as more travelers opted for behind-the-scenes visits to manufacturing sites over traditional sightseeing spots during the Chinese New Year holiday.

Many companies are capitalizing on this trend with facility tours focusing on tourists keen to combine novel immersive experiences with the education of visiting a factory, a production site or a tech hub.

Industrial tourism reservations exceeded 300,000 across eight locations in Beijing during the eight-day holiday between January 29 and February 4, according to data from the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Economy and Information Technology.

Xiaomi's Beijing factory was popular among those wanting to delve further into the production of automobiles, the bureau said.

Visitors were given the opportunity to explore the 718,000-square-meter site located in the Beijing Economic-Technology Development area and were able to take in all aspects of vehicle production, from welding and painting to assembly and quality inspection. 

Another notable location was in the Shougang Park to the west of Beijing. Representing China's industrial steel past, the 8.63-square-kilometer area has experienced urban revitalization and now plays host to a number of events annually. In 2024, the park welcomed over 13 million visitors, generating 5.8 billion yuan ($809 million) in revenue.

Companies elsewhere across the country are also capitalising on this trend. Chinese dairy giant Yili, located in Hohhot, the capital of north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, offers visitors an in-depth look at the country's modern dairy industry and production capabilities. Since first opening its doors in 2005, Yili Group has welcomed close to 3 billion visitors. 

This new popularity of China's industrial tourism has come as a record number of people traveled during the recent Chinese New Year holiday, with more than 2.3 billion passenger trips being made during the holiday period, according to data from the Ministry of Transportation.

Further consumption and growth opportunities are expected as China has announced two extra public holidays in 2025, one additional day for the Spring Festival and another for the May Labor Day holiday.

(With input from Xinhua)