Many scenic spots across various regions are offering free admission policies, and the post-holiday tourism market is showing signs of a "off-season not dull" trend.

Source: Securities Times Network Author: Cao Chen

Recently, multiple scenic spots announced free admission policies. The combined effect of spring outing demand and “free ticket” promotions has quickly warmed up March, traditionally a low season for culture and tourism. After the holiday, the market shows signs of “not being dull in the off-season.”

According to incomplete statistics, as of now, many provinces across the country, including Jiangxi, Henan, Liaoning, Zhejiang, Anhui, and others, have launched limited-time free ticket discounts for scenic spots (some spots limited to specific visitors). Data from the Tongcheng Travel platform shows that over the past week, search popularity for keywords like “free tickets for scenic spots” and “off-peak travel” has continued to rise, with a month-on-month increase of 358%. Among them, Yuntai Mountain Scenic Area, Shenyang Imperial Palace, Lushan Scenic Area, Tianji Dragon Gate, and Qingtian River Scenic Area ranked among the top 10 in the national list of popular free scenic spots.

As of March 4, the search and booking activity for hotels and scenic spot tickets on the platform has significantly declined from the peak during the Spring Festival, but still remains over 10% higher than the same period last year. The search volume for some popular scenic spots has increased by up to 2.6 times compared to the previous period, demonstrating that the “off-season” is not dull. In terms of visitor sources, the dominant return trips and inter-provincial travel during the Spring Festival are gradually cooling down, while local and surrounding area travel are becoming more active.

Specifically, in March, Lushan Scenic Area in Jiangxi is offering free admission to all domestic and international visitors. Over the past week, searches for Lushan Scenic Area increased by 156% month-on-month, and hotel bookings around the area rose by 23% year-on-year. Additionally, Yuntai Mountain Scenic Area in Henan is offering free tickets in March to visitors from Henan, Shanxi, Shandong, and Hebei, which has driven a 244% increase in searches for the scenic area and an 18% rise in hotel bookings nearby. From March 3 to March 8, the Shenyang Imperial Palace Museum released 3,000 free tickets daily for local residents to reserve; on the Tongcheng platform, searches and reservations increased by 163% month-on-month, and the free ticket reservations on March 3 and 4 were quickly snapped up after opening.

Qunar data shows that the “free ticket effect” directly boosted hotel bookings around several scenic spots. On February 25, Jiangxi’s Lushan announced that from March 1 to 31, 2026, all domestic and international visitors could enjoy free admission, covering Lushan Scenic Area, San Die Quan, Bailudong Academy, and other eight core scenic spots. After the announcement, hotel reservations in the Lushan business district surged significantly. As of now, bookings for hotels around Lushan in March have increased fivefold compared to the week before the announcement.

Data also shows that hotel reservations in Jiujiang, Jiangxi, were similarly boosted, increasing by 2.6 times compared to the previous period, reflecting a trend of tourists taking advantage of free tickets to explore surrounding cities more deeply.

In Zhejiang’s Quzhou, since November 2025, 13 core scenic spots have been open to the public free of charge until March 31, 2026. Qunar data indicates that during the free period, hotel reservations across Quzhou increased by nearly 20% year-on-year. The effect is especially notable around the free scenic spots: hotels near Jianglang Mountain increased by 47%, near Nianba Duzhen Ancient Town by 21%, and near Shuitingmen and Confucius Temple by 18%.

On February 25, Henan’s Jiaozuo Yuntai Mountain announced free admission for visitors from Henan, Shanxi, Shandong, and Hebei in March. So far, hotel bookings in Jiaozuo for March have increased by 2.5 times compared to the previous period.

On February 11, Anhui Ma’anshan announced that five major scenic spots would be open to global visitors free of charge until March 31. Qunar data shows that within 15 days of the announcement, hotel bookings in the area for March increased by 3.1 times compared to the previous period.

Yang Han, a researcher at Qunar Big Data Research Institute, analyzed that free admission to scenic spots lowers the threshold for travel decisions. By exchanging ticket “reductions” for increased visitor flow, it can quickly activate surrounding traffic and generate significant spillover effects in consumption, radiating to local and cross-regional cultural tourism. At the same time, free tickets also raise higher requirements for scenic spot service quality, pushing the industry to improve refined and professional operations.

It is worth noting that this weekend will mark the “International Women’s Day.” Scenic spots such as Huangshan in Anhui, Jiuzhaigou in Sichuan, and Pingshan Forest Park in Nanjing are offering limited-time free tickets for female visitors, leading to a 1.8-fold increase in related search volume. The “free ticket effect” combined with the weekend and Women’s Day has caused related travel product bookings to increase by over 65% compared to the previous weekend.

Tongcheng Research Institute believes that the post-holiday culture and tourism market this year shows the characteristic of “not being dull in the off-season,” mainly driven by three factors: first, many scenic spots launched free ticket promotions, directly stimulating tourists’ willingness to travel; second, local and surrounding area travel have become mainstream, with shorter travel radii but higher travel frequency; third, some office workers and senior groups choose to travel off-peak after the holiday, seeking higher cost-performance travel experiences. As the weather warms up, searches for “flower viewing” and “spring outing” keywords on the Tongcheng platform have increased by over 110% week-on-week, and a new travel peak is expected nationwide in late March.