On September 14, a travel trends forecast report for the 2026 Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday was released, revealing that search interest for keywords like "Mid-Autumn Festival" and "National Day" on the platform surged by 278% month-over-month. Booking momentum for flights, hotels, car rentals, and vacation packages has climbed across the board.
Among the destinations experiencing this holiday-driven surge, Xinjiang stands out prominently, with Urumqi securing the top spot as the most popular long-haul destination in China. Data from the report shows that the flow of travelers is heavily directed toward core destinations in the northwest and southwest, including Xinjiang, Yunnan, and Sichuan.
According to flight booking statistics, the top 10 long-haul destinations for the Mid-Autumn and National Day period are Urumqi, Kunming, Harbin, Yining, Guiyang, Xining, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Haikou, and Lhasa. Urumqi leads this list, benefiting from its role as a key hub for routes exceeding 3,200 kilometers, with flight booking enthusiasm rising 47% year-over-year, fueled by travelers from northern, eastern, and southern China heading westward.
"I booked my flight days ago, and now I'm picking out a rental car model," said Zhang Xu, a tourist from Jiangsu. He expressed his long-held anticipation for a self-drive trip to Urumqi, planning to set off with several friends from Nanjing and Suzhou during the holiday to enjoy the golden autumn scenery of Xinjiang.
For long-haul vacation packages, booking interest has grown by over 25% year-over-year as of September 14, with Xinjiang ranking first among the top 5 popular destinations. Products like the 8-day, 7-night itinerary covering Kanas, Hemu, and Sayram Lake are selling particularly well, with most bookings coming from families or groups of two or more traveling together.
Yining also makes the top five for long-haul destinations, securing the fourth position, and showing significant growth in car rental demand. As Xinjiang's vast landscapes and scattered scenic spots often lead travelers to opt for self-drive options upon landing, car rental interest on the platform has risen 15% year-over-year, with Yining seeing a 20% jump. SUVs with spacious interiors are the most sought-after vehicle type, and rental periods typically range from 5 to 7 days.
An analyst from the research institute noted that this golden week is characterized by three trends: extended travel time, expanded spatial reach, and deeper experiential engagement. The dual-city leadership of Urumqi and Yining underscores a shift from superficial sightseeing to immersive travel. Urumqi acts as a gateway hub channeling long-haul traffic, while Yining connects surrounding counties through self-drive tours, together unlocking significant consumption potential in northwest long-haul tourism.