According to Meituan's "2026 Spring Festival Consumption Insights Report," Beijing, Shanghai, and Chengdu ranked as the top three most popular travel destinations during the holiday period. The list of top ten destinations also included Chongqing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Xi'an, Hangzhou, Nanjing, and Wuhan. The surge in travel was driven by various factors, including family reunions and reverse migration trends. At the county level, Yiwu in Zhejiang, Heshan in Guangdong, and Zhangjiagang in Jiangsu were the three most visited locations.
Family trips played a significant role in boosting cultural and tourism spending during the Spring Festival. Data from Meituan Travel indicated a 76% year-on-year increase in bookings for family tickets, with multi-generational travel emerging as a new trend. This year, users traveled farther and explored more deeply, with the average person visiting 2.2 cities. The number of travelers visiting multiple cities rose by 50% compared to the previous year.
Artificial intelligence also contributed to the holiday experience, as more people turned to AI for travel planning. Between February 12 and 22, Meituan's AI assistant, "Xiao Tuan," verified merchant information 550 million times and reassessed 1 billion user reviews, helping travelers save time and avoid common pitfalls.
Travel bookings in Yibin increased by 56% year-on-year, while Hefei saw a 30% rise. Yiwu stood out as the most popular county-level destination for tourism during the festival. The city set up ten check-in spots inspired by the Spring Festival Gala, attracting visitors from across the country. Among these, "Ximen Old Street," which recreated scenes from the gala, experienced a more than fivefold increase in searches.
Traditional travel destinations remained popular as well, fueled by a growing interest in in-depth tourism. Meituan's report highlighted significant growth in non-local visitors to Yunnan, Xinjiang, and Hainan. Long-distance travel gained traction, with a 70% increase in the proportion of travelers choosing destinations over 300 kilometers away.