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not long ago, zhangjiajie tourism group co., ltd. released its 2024 semi-annual report, which caused heated discussions due to the sharp contrast between the increase in tourist numbers and the decline in revenue and profits.

similarly, recently, the "report cards" of popular online cities such as harbin, zibo, and tianshui have not matched their online popularity.these cities have more or less encountered the dilemma of "many people but few financial resources", and the traffic has not been converted into the expected economic growth.

tourism is a comprehensive industry and an important driving force for economic development. it has the unique function of "the prosperity of one industry drives the prosperity of all industries". recently, more and more cities have been competing to become internet celebrities, and even many directors of cultural and tourism bureaus have "taken the field" to cheer for local cultural and tourism undertakings.

however, the "report cards" submitted by some internet celebrity cities and cultural and tourism companies are shocking.

in the first half of the year, zhangjiajie tourism group co., ltd. achieved operating income of approximately 174 million yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 2.87%; the net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was approximately -61.1629 million yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 49.13%. however, in the first half of 2024, zhangjiajie city received a total of 20.6447 million domestic and foreign tourists, a year-on-year increase of 9.28%.

the dayong ancient city project in zhangjiajie took more than 7 years to build.the number of ticket buyers in the first half of the year dropped sharply by 81.89% to 2,300, revenue decreased by 8.48% year-on-year, and the net loss was as high as 64.3841 million yuan., which has become the main reason affecting zhangjiajie's performance.

dayong ancient city source: zhangjiajie dayong ancient city

"to a certain extent, this reflects that people's attitude towards life has changed. more and more people want to travel, but they are more careful about their travel spending," said yu yongding, a member of the academic division of the chinese academy of social sciences.

zhangjiajie is not the only city to experience a similar situation. this year, from zibo, harbin to tianshui, my country's cultural and tourism internet celebrity cities have emerged one after another.judging from the data on paper, its role in driving urban economic growth or even increasing revenue from the cultural and tourism industry is not very obvious.

harbin is a "dark horse" in my country's cultural tourism market in the first half of this year. tencent location big data shows that in the first seven months of this year, harbin received a total of 190 million foreign tourists.the “overwhelming traffic” did not drive harbin’s gdp to achieve rapid growthin the first half of the year, harbin's gdp totaled 249.26 billion yuan, with an increase of 4.097 billion yuan and a nominal growth rate of 1.67%. it ranked low in terms of gdp increase and nominal growth rate among the 15 sub-provincial cities in the country.

in addition, zibo, which has evolved from "going to zibo to roast" to "going to zibo to roast again", and tianshui, gansu, which became famous for its spicy hot pot, continue to remain popular.in the first half of this year, zibo's gdp was 238.15 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.1%, and tianshui's gdp was 39.622 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 3.8%. both rankings were lower than the average level of the two provinces.

similar situations also occur in popular tourist attractions.qujiang culture and tourism, the operator of the tang dynasty everbright city, a business card of xi'an's cultural tourism, owns xi'an's top tourism resources such as qujiang big wild goose pagoda and tang paradise, xi'an city wall scenic area, and daming palace national heritage park. recently, xi'an qujiang culture and tourism co., ltd. released its 2024 semi-annual report, showing that the company achieved operating income of 770 million yuan in the first half of the year, an increase of 11.9% year-on-year, but the net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was -187 million yuan.

daming palace national heritage park source: photo network

regarding the loss, qujiang culture and tourism stated that it was mainly due to changes in the expected credit loss model of accounts receivable in this period compared with the same period last year, resulting in an increase in the amount of bad debt provisions.

chongqing hongyadong, a popular scenic spot, is also in a loss-making state.according to the listing announcement of the chongqing stock exchange, from 2021 to 2023, the net profit of hongyadong culture and tourism was only 58,900 yuan, -3.4346 million yuan and -1.5788 million yuan respectively.

although the above-mentioned companies have issued announcements to explain their performance, the difficulty in changing "huge traffic" has become an issue that such companies cannot avoid.

tuo yan'ai, associate professor at the school of tourism and service engineering of nankai university, believes thatjudging from the economic performance of internet celebrity cities, there is still a long way to go from "internet celebrity" to "long-term popularity". in particular, we need to reflect on how to capture the "emotional needs" of tourists and create long-term attraction.

01

why has the “huge traffic” failed to “boost” the economy?

some cities are eager to develop, and are “sitting on pins and needles” when talking about development. other cities have taken the path of becoming internet celebrities, but have still not been able to get out of the predicament. what is the reason?

first of all, it has a strong commercial flavor, which leads to tourists' low willingness to consume.

this summer, the tourism market showed a trend of "increasing volume and falling prices". according to qunar.com data, the average price paid for domestic air tickets during the summer was 6% lower than the same period last year, and the average hotel price was 8%. this should have stimulated the willingness to travel, but many tourists reflected on social platforms thatsome internet-famous cities are very different online and offline, do not live up to their reputation, and have a strong commercial atmosphere. coupled with the exorbitant prices in tourist attractions, it is difficult for people to have a strong desire to consume except for the necessary food and accommodation.

hongyadong night view source: photo network

for example, a small seaside town went viral online because of its "blue tears". many tourists found that "the seawater stinks, the shore is full of garbage", "the road is not wide enough, and there are frequent traffic jams", "taxis are overcharged"... netizens posted "warning posts" on social media.

dai bin, president of the china tourism academy, believes thatthe era when scenic spots relied on "huge crowds to make profits and enclosing mountains and waters to charge admission tickets" is gone forever., the local area must have a series of supporting infrastructure, public services and business environment, otherwise, the tourists who come in droves may be disappointed.

secondly, tourism projects have been monotonous for a long time, and the lack of innovation has made it difficult for tourists to have a good experience.

in recent years, many scenic spot operators have begun to explore the transformation from sightseeing tours to leisure and vacation. however, some scenic spots are still in the incubation period or the market response is not as expected. tourists have reported that the projects are highly homogenized. glass plank roads, high-altitude swings, stream rafting, live performances... these are must-have projects for many scenic spots.due to the lack of creativity, many scenic spots are often "one-time deals", and tourists don't even want to experience them after they come, so naturally they are unlikely to spend money.

in addition, harbin, zibo and tianshui are all old industrial cities. although tourism can bring certain economic vitality and popularity,if the tourism consumption structure is single and lacks diversified consumption experience, it will easily limit the income growth potential of the tourism market.

tianshui malatang is popular. source: tianshui release

02

a shot in the arm for the long-term success of internet celebrity cities

the recent popularity of black myth: wukong has triggered cultural tourism promotion in many places. as the filming location of journey to the west and its sequels, zhangjiajie has seen a certain increase in stock prices due to the popularity of the game, which has also brought new topics to tourism.

when the traffic tide of internet celebrity cities recedes, the competition in industry, innovation, internal strength and deep cultivation has just begun.

industry experts suggest thatfirst, we must accumulate "internal strength" and increase investment in infrastructure and public services.if "internet celebrities" want to be "long-lasting", they must continue to lay a solid foundation in terms of the standardization of tourism reception facilities and service quality, constantly optimize product structure, and consider more foreign tourists. only when the infrastructure is in place can they be ready to receive "flooding wealth" at any time, and even if they are "expired", they can still be "popular again".

harbin ice and snow world source: photo network

wei xiang, a professor at the school of business of the university of chinese academy of social sciences, believes that for cities with relatively mature tourism development, tourism is no longer just an economic industry, but also a shaper of urban leisure and public services, playing a role in improving the "soft governance" of various urban departments. at present, the role of tourism in urban development has changed, that is, it has been upgraded from the original economic function to the comprehensive reflection of cultural and social attributes. therefore, if a city wants to develop tourism,there is a need to shape a tourism industry that can drive cities to more efficient and higher levels of governance.

"cultivating the connotation of a city is the long-term solution. only unique things can attract people." wei xiang believes thatthe charm of an internet celebrity city does not only come from one or two short-lived popularity, but is also rooted in the comprehensive and in-depth integration of culture, tourism, food, performing arts, convention and exhibition economy and sports activities.only through multi-dimensional coordinated development can we build a unique and lasting attraction.

"strengthen ip protection for urban cultural products and tourism projects to ensure that the uniqueness of creativity and content cannot be easily copied." tuo yan'ai suggested creating a unique urban experience by innovating based on local culture.

for example, historical districts and cultural heritage are valuable resources of a city.historical districts and cultural heritage can be revitalized through modern design, technology and innovation, so that they can retain their historical features while integrating into modern life.this approach will not only attract tourists interested in history, but will also attract younger generations looking for innovative experiences.

the intervention of technological means is becoming increasingly indispensable.this summer, tianjin teda aircraft carrier theme park held summer music and fireworks shows for several consecutive weekends. on one side, the majestic "kiev" aircraft carrier was set off by lights, and on the other side, the super-large fireworks with a height of up to 200 meters shone in the night sky. tens of thousands of fireworks and salutes were continuously fired, and fireworks of various shapes sometimes drooped like willow branches and sometimes fell like flower rain, which made the aircraft carrier park, which originally had a fixed way of visiting, suddenly set off a new climax and became a must-visit "check-in place" for many tourists to tianjin. this reflects the charm of modern technological innovation.

tianjin teda aircraft carrier theme park source: teda aircraft carrier theme park

since internet celebrity cities "started" on the internet, they must further work on online marketing.tuo yan'ai said that cities can consider establishing community culture, creating online and offline community platforms around the uniqueness of the city, and connecting tourists with local residents who have common interests and hobbies. regular activities and interactions can be used to enhance the overall popularity and consumption level of the city and increase the connection between tourists and tourist destinations. this "bottom-up" model can not only enhance the sense of belonging of participants, but also make urban development more humane and sustainable.