All published updates

Sunmei and Accor Sign Two More Brands for China

On 17 September 2026, Sunmei Hotels Group and Accor held a launch event in Qingdao to bring Accor's midscale lifestyle brand JO&JOE and midscale light-resort brand greet by Accor into the China market, with Sunmei fully responsible for development, pre-opening and operations management in China. The four-year strategic partnership now covers a four-brand matrix, with the combined store count of the four partner brands expected to exceed 70 this year. greet by Accor is expected to expand to 50 stores in mainland China by the end of this year.

2026 TravelDaily Summit set for Sept 22-23 in Shanghai with 1,600+ executives confirmed

TravelDaily announced its 2026 TravelDaily Summit will be held September 22-23 at the Shanghai International Convention Center, with registration closing soon. Organisers say more than 1,600 travel industry executives have confirmed attendance, and the attendee directory lists over 1,800 mid-to-senior industry professionals, 70% at director level or above. The summit features three forums, over 100 speakers from leading companies and 30+ core sessions spanning corporate buyers, hotels, airlines, car rental, destinations, TMCs and travel agencies, and travel technology, with exhibition, standard and VIP ticket tiers.

Sunac Snow Wonder Signs Shanghai Songjiang Ice and Snow Sports Complex Project

On September 16, the signing ceremony for the Shanghai Songjiang Ice and Snow Sports Complex project was held. Sunac Snow Wonder will lead the professional operation and management of the ski slope. The project was initially planned and advanced by the Songjiang District Government and Erjin Management, with Southeast Grid Group investing in construction. The project is planned as a flagship professional ski resort capable of hosting international ski federation events, with supporting hotel, dining, and wellness commercial spaces. To date, Sunac Snow Wonder has operated 11 large indoor ski resorts across China.

Preferred Hotels & Resorts Adds Three Member Hotels in China

Preferred Hotels & Resorts announced three new member hotels in China for 2026: Tonino Lamborghini Hotel Chengdu, Hotel Banov Townscape Wuhan, and Surya Hotel Shanghai New Hongqiao Center. They join the Lifestyle and L.V.X. collections. Globally, Preferred represents over 625 member hotels in 80 countries and regions, with 13 member hotels in China.

240-hour transit visa-free countries rise to 57

Pinchain Tourism reports that the 2026 World Tourism Cooperation and Development Conference was held at the Shougang International Convention and Exhibition Center in Beijing, where the World Tourism City Development Report (2025-2026) was released. Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong ranked in the top ten of the global tourism city ranking, with Beijing fifth, up two places from last year. The report assesses 100 tourism cities across six dimensions: city visibility, industry prosperity, city intelligence, tourism safety, economic contribution and visitor satisfaction. National Immigration Administration data released in July showed 22.914 million inbound foreign visits in the first half of 20…

HX Expeditions Holds 2026 International Brand Day in Shanghai, Unveils New Season

Pinchain Tourism reported that HX Expeditions held its annual flagship '2026 International Brand Day' in Shanghai on September 10-11, coinciding with its 130th anniversary, with over 300 travel trade partners, media, and new-media guests. The event shared IAATO official data, Antarctic expedition knowledge, science education, immersive VR experiences, and released new 2028/2029 season itineraries. HX Asia-Pacific commercial vice president Joe Zou said China is a core strategic market, with plans over the next three to five years to deepen channel cooperation, Chinese-language expedition team service, destination development, and China team investment.

Meituan: Mid-Autumn and National Day flight bookings up 44% year on year

Meituan data shows flight bookings for this year's Mid-Autumn and National Day holiday rose 44% year on year, with long-haul bookings over 2,000 km up 76% and accounting for more than a quarter of the total; users booking two or more destinations rose 70%. September 10-17 was the booking peak, with nearly 20% of travellers departing the day before Mid-Autumn and over half departing before September 30. Chengdu, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chongqing led destinations, while Shanghai-Urumqi bookings rose 235%. Combined air-rail transfers drew attention for their price advantage, with Beijing-Yuncheng air-rail options saving up to 70%.

Upgraded Experiences Unlock Wonderful Cultural Tourism Nights: Nighttime Market Continues to Heat Up

In summer 2026, China's nighttime cultural tourism market continued to heat up, with bookings for night tours and night economy products up 52% YoY. County-level night tour bookings grew 67% YoY, with popular destinations including Anji in Zhejiang, Fenghuang in Hunan, Yangshuo in Guangxi, Zhenyuan in Guizhou, and Tongxiang in Zhejiang. Non-local visitor orders accounted for 56% of night tour products. Many museums launched new night experiences, and night markets, beer festivals, and music festivals enriched nighttime consumption. Shanghai Metro optimized extended hours to connect cultural venues and commercial night markets. Experts note night tourism is shifting from scale expansion to q…

Juneyao Air to Customize New Cabins for 25 A320 Family Aircraft

On its 20th anniversary, Juneyao Air announced a joint cabin upgrade program with Airbus for 25 A320 family aircraft, with the first new-cabin aircraft planned for delivery in the second half of 2028. The upgrade will integrate Juneyao Air's brand proposition with Airbus Airspace cabin concept, introducing larger overhead bins, LED ambient lighting, and lightweight interior materials to reduce fuel consumption and carbon emissions. Juneyao Air's fleet currently stands at 105 aircraft, including 95 Airbus A320 family aircraft.

SAMR and Ministry of Culture and Tourism Hold Administrative Guidance Meeting for Online Hotel Book…

On Sept 15, China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR), together with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, held an administrative guidance meeting for the online hotel booking platform services industry, directing platform companies to fulfill compliance responsibilities and prevent and resolve industry competition risks. The meeting required platforms to strictly comply with the Anti-Monopoly Law, Anti-Unfair Competition Law, E-Commerce Law and Tourism Law, learn from cases, self-inspect, and guard against exclusive cooperation, 'lowest price across the entire internet' and other 'involution' issues and competition risks, and to build long-term compliance mechanisms. Heads o…

AI Enters Scenic Areas: Digital Technology Accelerates Integration into Cultural Tourism

The 2026 China International Fair for Trade in Services showcased the latest smart tourism achievements, with AI accelerating integration into cultural tourism. Yili Grassland Dairy Culture Tourism Scenic Area uses digital cows, XR panoramic roaming, and AR interaction for immersive industrial tourism, receiving over 940,000 visitors this year as of August, with average family stay extended to 4.5 hours. Dalian Xiongdong Street's AI bionic giant bear 'Beibei' attracted about 1.73 million visitors in the past year. Shanghai's 'Huxiaoyou' city life agent has served over 20 million users. Fujian Piaofutong's multimodal AI companion service has served 3.5 million tourists, with an active usage…

2026 TravelDaily Summit and Business Travel Digital Tourism Expo to be Held in Shanghai in September

The 2026 TravelDaily Summit will be held on September 22-23 at Shanghai International Convention Center, alongside the 2026 Business Travel & Digital Tourism Expo. The expo focuses on business travel resources and online travel technology, gathering hotel groups, airlines, car rental companies, cruise lines, visa services, and companies in travel tech, digital marketing, fintech, and OTAs. 49 companies have become sponsors or exhibitors. Over 1,800 travel industry executives are expected, with 70% at director level or above.

Tuniu Releases 2026 Mid-Autumn and National Day Travel Trend Forecast

Tuniu released its 2026 Mid-Autumn and National Day travel trend forecast, showing that booking and travel cycles for outbound and long-haul domestic trips shifted notably earlier. Families and three-generation groups accounted for over 70% of travelers; among those on National Day tours from October 1 to 7, over 35% departed before the holiday and over 10% left before Mid-Autumn to avoid crowds. Long-haul domestic travel led demand, with growing shares for independent travel and small pure-play groups, while short-haul outbound private groups were popular.

Shanghai Ports Top 30 Million Exit-Entry Movements This Year

Shanghai General Station of Exit and Entry Frontier Inspection disclosed that as of September 9, exit-entry movements at Shanghai ports this year exceeded 30 million, with Pudong and Hongqiao international airports accounting for 28.239 million. The rise from 20 million on June 22 to 30 million took only 80 days. Foreign arrivals reached 4.732 million, up 19% year on year; 3.142 million, or over 66.4%, entered under visa-free or 240-hour transit visa-free policies. Shanghai border inspection continues to optimize staffing, open more channels and promote online arrival-card filing.

Fliggy Partners with Eastar Jet to Expand Low-Cost China-Korea Tickets

On September 10, Fliggy and South Korean low-cost carrier Eastar Jet signed a cooperation agreement in Hangzhou to deepen collaboration in digital marketing, membership benefits and AI. Eastar Jet's China routes cover Shanghai, Yanji, Zhangjiajie, Yantai, Zhengzhou and Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. Fliggy data shows Chinese bookings for Korean travel products grew over 40% year on year this summer, while Korean inbound flight bookings nearly doubled.

Shanghai's First AI-Glasses City Companion Pilot Lands in Yuyuan

During the 2026 Inclusion Bund Conference, Shanghai's first AI-glasses city-companion pilot launched on 9 September at the Yuyuan scenic area in Huangpu District. Visitors wearing Qwen AI glasses can access historical commentary on old buildings, voice navigation, real-time translation and direct payment for goods, linking commentary, Q&A, navigation, translation and consumption while reducing phone searches and app switching. Dayuyuan said it hopes to interact with visitors intelligently, and Huangpu District cited its dense cultural landmarks and new consumption scenes as application space for AI terminals.

Fliggy and Eastar Jet Partner to Expand China-Korea Routes

On September 10, Fliggy and South Korean low-cost carrier Eastar Jet signed a cooperation agreement in Hangzhou to deepen collaboration in digital marketing, membership benefits and AI. Eastar Jet covers East Asia, Southeast Asia and Central Asia, with China among its densest route networks, operating flights between some Korean cities and Shanghai, Yanji, Zhangjiajie, Yantai, Zhengzhou and Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. Fliggy data shows Chinese bookings for Korean travel products grew over 40% year on year this summer.

Amap Street Scan List 2026 Released: Algorithm Upgrade, Covering 269 Cities

On 10 September, Alibaba Group's Amap announced the full AI-ification of its Street Scan List, upgrading the ranking algorithm with spatial intelligence, and officially released the Amap Street Scan List 2026. The new algorithm increases the weight of behaviours such as dedicated visits and repeat visits, and introduces professional ratings. The Champion List added coffee, bar and entertainment categories; the Fireworks Small Shop List expanded to 269 cities; and the national BEST100 series was launched for the first time. Data shows that in its first year, the list served over 880 million users, with 36.6 billion kilometres of annual navigation to listed merchants, driving a 424% year-on-y…

Shanghai air and rail hubs handle over 52 million passengers in 62-day summer season

During the 62-day 2026 summer travel season, Shanghai Pudong and Hongqiao airports handled 25.281 million passengers and 151,000 aircraft movements, up 3.1% year on year; Shanghai railway station sent more than 27 million passengers, with a single-day peak of 597,000 on 22 August. Combined air and rail volume exceeded 52 million passengers. Pudong airport's port inspected 6.7 million inbound and outbound travellers, while Shanghai railway station received 435,000 foreign passengers, up 24% year on year. Shanghai airports added seven international destinations including Dublin and Tbilisi, with the network now covering 302 destinations in 53 countries.

Off-peak travel prices fall as seniors and young professionals drive September demand

With summer family traffic fading and the Mid-Autumn and National Day holidays yet to begin, China's domestic travel market has entered an off-peak window with lower airfare and hotel prices. Tuniu data show stronger travel intent among people over 50 since September; Tongcheng data show a notable share of travellers aged 55-plus and young professionals splitting 3–4 days off with annual leave; Meituan data show people aged 20–30 account for nearly 50% of "low-season" travellers. Tongcheng's discounted airfare list shows September off-peak fares are 30–40% cheaper than during the Mid-Autumn and National Day holidays, while pre-Mid-Autumn hotel rates are down 30–40% from August. The National…

Shanghai's Tax Refund Services Expand into Consumer Scenes

Shanghai sees high inbound consumption, with tax refund services expanding to high-end malls, street commerce, and supermarkets. Jing'an District accounts for nearly half of the city's refund sales, with over 800 registered stores.兴业太古汇's instant refund transactions grew 700%, and RT-Mart launched instant refund service.

2026 TravelDaily Summit to be Held in Shanghai in September

The 2026 TravelDaily Summit will take place on September 22-23 at the Shanghai International Convention Center, with over 1,000 travel industry executives already confirmed to attend. The summit is expected to host 1,800+ participants, with 70% holding director-level or above positions. The event features three forums, over 100 speakers, and 30+ core topics, aiming to facilitate networking among corporate buyers, hotels, airlines, car rentals, destinations, TMCs, and travel agencies.

September Off-Peak Travel in Season; Bookings Rise Around 24th

Meituan data shows that among September off-peak travelers, those aged 20-30 account for nearly 50%, with popular destinations including Beijing, Chengdu, Harbin, etc. Airfares are low, the 'take 3 days off for 13-day holiday' plan is popular, and travel bookings around September 24 are rising.

Shanghai's Night Economy Booms with New Cultural Activities

Shanghai's night economy is heating up with diverse cultural activities blending commerce, tourism, sports, and exhibitions. Sinan Mansions hosts a Lu Xun Literature Prize exhibition, Fuxing Park launches immersive night tours, and Yuyuan Garden area sees a 17% week-on-week increase in weekend night footfall.

Shanghai Cracks Down on Airport Taxi Issues, Refusal Rates Drop Sharply

Shanghai airport police and multiple departments have cracked down on taxi misconduct such as passenger dumping. Refusal rates at Pudong and Hongqiao airports dropped 54% and 84.29% year-on-year, short-trip order shares fell, and passenger complaints decreased.

Impact and considerations

Improves airport transport order, enhances business traveler experience, and reduces delays caused by taxi issues.