During the just-concluded Spring Festival, Jimei tourism achieved a strong start to the year, with a significant boost in revenue-generating capacity. Data shows that during the 2019 Spring Festival holiday, Jimei District’s accommodation establishments hosted 96,500 overnight visitors, a year-on-year increase of 17.26%, with an average occupancy rate of nearly 80%. The average length of stay rose from 1.5 days to 2 days. A total of 969,700 tourists were received, generating tourism revenue of 513 million yuan. The influx of visitors also led to booming hotel and catering businesses, with multiple hotels such as Hilton Huilong Wanda Plaza and Lingling Grand Hotel reporting catering revenues exceeding one million yuan. Capitalizing on this momentum, Jimei tourism is gearing up for Lantern Festival events, making the most of the tail end of the winter vacation to offer visitors a unique family-friendly experience.
At a new stage where tourism shifts from high-speed growth to high-quality development, Jimei District, as a key administrative region of the tourist city of Xiamen, has seen a continuous rise in its "charm index" and "revenue index," serving as strong evidence of its rapid catch-up and high-quality development. In recent years, under the guidance of cultural and tourism authorities in Fujian Province and Xiamen City, the Jimei District Party Committee and District Government have focused on building six major industrial chains and seven key investment projects. They have precisely targeted the family market, deepened reforms in tourism supply-side structural innovation, and created tourism products with innovative thinking to meet the consumption needs of tourists. This has continuously improved the quality and experience of tourism, attracting more visitors to Jimei for travel, accommodation, and spending. The district has developed a comprehensive tourism "Jimei Model" characterized by "brand events + integrated marketing + immersive experiences + premium consumption," driving the shift of Jimei tourism from "quantity" to "quality." From 2016 to 2018, both the number of tourists and tourism revenue in Jimei District tripled, maintaining the highest growth rates in the city. Notably, during the 2018 National Day holiday, Jimei District ranked first in tourist numbers in Xiamen for the first time, while accommodation and catering revenue growth led the city for the entire year.
Precise Positioning and Innovative Products Drive Strong Revenue
"The family market is a high-quality tourism segment and a key focus for Jimei tourism development. This Spring Festival, various scenic spots and hotels in the district offered a rich variety of festive activities, making a trip to Jimei truly unique for families," said a Jimei District official. Leveraging big data analysis, major scenic spots in Jimei planned distinctive family-friendly activities, quickly drawing in crowds.
At the Chengyi Science and Technology Exploration Center, the Snow Park and the "Hezheng Ancient Animal Fossil Exhibition" became the most popular attractions for children, receiving 30,700 visitors over five days, a 55.3% increase. Tianmu Hot Springs created a uniquely themed "Hot Springs Light Show," maximizing the site's leisure and entertainment appeal, hosting 6,000 visitors, a 18.5% rise. The popularity of Jimei’s nighttime tourism offerings this Spring Festival also encouraged visitors to extend their stays. The Lingling Circus’ Lunar New Year show, "Dragon and Phoenix Dance – Golden Pig Celebrates the New Year," was a sell-out, attracting 94,700 visitors, a 18.6% increase. Similarly, the "Legend of Southern Fujian" performance at Xiamen Old Courtyard was a hit, with all shows sold out and 111,000 visitors, a 13.1% rise. Additionally, events like the Prayer and Flower Festival at Yuanbo Garden and the Fruit Paradise Fruit Cartoon Festival added a festive touch, offering visitors something new and exciting every day in Jimei.
During the New Year period, the proportion of individual travelers at Jimei scenic spots increased from 50% to 60%, with self-guided tours and family trips becoming the main drivers of consumption. Revenue at major Jimei attractions also saw significant growth, boosting tourism economic benefits. Yuanbo Garden saw a 4% rise in visitors but a 31.2% increase in ticket revenue, earning 2.001 million yuan. Lingling International Circus saw an 18.6% rise in visitors and a 35.5% increase in ticket revenue, with 94,200 visitors generating 10.7664 million yuan. Notably, secondary consumption such as dining and shopping within the scenic areas also boomed, further enhancing tourism economic benefits.
While individual attractions excelled, Jimei also innovated tourism products with a "cross-sector integration" mindset, developing offerings such as "tourism + culture," "tourism + sports," "tourism + wellness," and "tourism + technology" to meet the diverse needs of different groups. During the Spring Festival, Jimei launched a series of "Family and Friends Travel" products, bundling options for locals to host visiting relatives and friends. Rural sports and leisure tourism and eco-experience tours centered around attractions like Shuanglongtan and Tasman also attracted many urban visitors. Meanwhile, the new Xiamen Library branch and the cultural creative block Jimei Dashe became popular social media check-in spots, rapidly drawing in crowds.
Service Innovation Enhances Immersive Experiences and Keeps Visitors
"Quality tourism is the inevitable trend in the evolution of the tourism industry. Only by perfecting every detail can we enhance the quality of tourism and keep visitors coming back," said a Jimei official. With this belief, Jimei continues to deepen and innovate its tourism services, encouraging visitors to stay longer and explore more of what the district has to offer.
During the Spring Festival, the Jimei Tourist Shuttle – the iconic tram – operated without interruption, providing direct access to scenic spots and hotels, solving transportation challenges for holidaymakers. It also facilitated visitor flow between attractions. Additionally, the tram offered special group booking discounts and customized travel routes based on individual needs, giving visitors a VIP Jimei experience.
The Jimei District also tailored services to the characteristics of Spring Festival travelers, focusing on consumer demand and using more humanized services to enhance the travel experience and boost local spending. During the holiday, the district created comprehensive play, dine, shop, and entertainment guides, placing them directly in hotel rooms for targeted marketing. Training sessions were also conducted to improve hotel staff knowledge of attractions and attraction staff knowledge of hotel dining options, turning both into mutual promoters and effectively addressing visitors' dining needs during the New Year. This collaborative innovation facilitated cross-promotion between hotels and attractions, promoting mutual publicity, cooperation, and mutual benefits across the district’s tourism resources.
Meanwhile, during the Spring Festival, Jimei stepped up market regulation and management. Through pre-holiday preparations, in-holiday supervision, and joint enforcement involving tourism, traffic police, fire services, market regulation, pricing, law enforcement, and health authorities, the district ensured that residents and visitors enjoyed a safe and joyful holiday in Jimei.
Jimei’s various attractions and hotels paid attention to every detail, offering humanized, family-oriented, and personalized services, which further extended the average length of stay for overnight visitors. Statistics show that the average occupancy rate of accommodations in Jimei continued to rise during the Spring Festival, reaching nearly 80%, with the average stay increasing from 1.5 to 2 days. Despite an increase of nearly 3,000 beds, the occupancy rate of star-rated hotels remained high. The top three hotels — Lingling Grand Hotel, Beihaiwan Wanda Hotel, and Ridong Garden Hotel — had occupancy rates of 89.45%, 86.5%, and 83.6%, respectively. In addition, boutique homestays surged in popularity, with nine registered homestays on Jimei Street achieving over 90% occupancy this spring.
Integrated Marketing Boosts Visibility for Attractions and Hotels
"During the Spring Festival holiday, the Chengyi Science and Technology Exploration Center became one of the most popular attractions in Xiamen, thanks not only to its own attractive special events but also to the collaborative marketing efforts between attractions and hotels this year," said Lin Jiesheng, head of the Chengyi Science and Technology Exploration Center.
In recent years, to drive tourism quality and efficiency, Jimei District has conducted precise market analysis and introduced big data and third-party evaluations. It has innovatively created the "International Jimei Festival," a unique tourism IP for Jimei, integrating brand events with the district’s attractions, hotels, commerce, and other tourism resources into an upgraded platform. Relying on the Jimei Festival, the district has continuously upgraded its marketing strategies, precisely targeting audiences and using online-offline integration to drive tourism growth.
This Spring Festival, Jimei placed greater emphasis on the linkage and synergy of its tourism resources, launching innovative campaigns such as "New Year Ji Fortune" and "New Year Tram Lucky Draw." From the first to the fifteenth day of the lunar New Year, visitors could participate in red packet giveaways at designated spots in attractions or on the tram, kicking off the year with good luck. These activities not only provided discounts to visitors but also united various attractions, enhancing collaboration and overall tourism appeal.
In strengthening marketing efforts, Jimei tapped into the power of self-media, upgrading promotional methods by using visitor tagging for more precise targeting. For example, proactive marketing was directed at family and student groups, with engaging content mining through diary-style check-ins. Additionally, Jimei tourism utilized trendy new media tools such as creative posters, short videos, and online contests, fueling a tourism boom. Notably, the official "Jimei Tourism" WeChat account frequently ranked first among county-level WeChat accounts in Fujian for influence. During the Spring Festival, the Jimei Tourism WeChat account saw a 6.6-fold increase in followers compared to usual, while its Baidu search index on mobile devices rose 212% year-on-year and 54% month-on-month.
Tourism Product Innovation Strongly Drives Market Consumption
Jimei tourism has consistently used innovative thinking to develop tourism derivative products, enhancing its revenue-generating ability and stimulating market consumption through the creation of travel souvenirs and extended recommendations.
Different from traditional tourism derivatives, Jimei innovatively integrated "study tours" with souvenirs, creating culturally and tourism-rich specialty products. During the Spring Festival, various attractions in Jimei chose different focal points based on their unique features, developing distinctive study tour courses and products. The Lingling Animal Kingdom focused on the giant panda IP, promoting panda-themed science education. The Chengyi Science and Technology Exploration Center hosted the Hezheng Ancient Animal Fossil Exhibition and offered over ten science courses, including "Deep Space Decoding" and "The Ever-Changing Moon Phases," bringing joy to many visitors.
In developing study tour derivatives, Jimei continuously leveraged its own attractions and university resources, emphasizing the integration of tourism products with cultural education. Guided by the "Four Pillars and Eight Beams" framework, it enriched the content and spatial layers of Jimei’s study tour offerings. In 2018, Jimei established a "1+X" diversified study tour system, including one study tour headquarters, 29 course bases, and over 600 sub-courses. It also launched several study tour brands, such as the Jimei International Cultural Exchange Season for Chinese and international students and cross-strait study tour exchanges.
Jimei tourism also adhered to a "people-oriented" philosophy, creating an innovative online derivative — the "Jimei Tourism" mini-program. Free to download, data-efficient, and easy to use, it serves as an official online ticketing and information service platform, comprehensively meeting users’ tourism needs and becoming a handy travel companion for visitors.
Additionally, Jimei designed and produced various tourism derivatives based on market demand, including hand-drawn postcards, China’s first tourism-themed "Monopoly" online mini-game, Jimei gesture-based E-Tong cards, and custom souvenirs. It built an online trading platform and marketing IP brand, continuously enhancing the added value and brand depth of Jimei tourism. The city’s brand influence expanded steadily, laying a solid foundation for sustained growth in tourism revenue.
Spring Festival attraction activities are just a microcosm of Jimei’s deeper implementation of tourism supply-side reforms. Since 2016, Jimei District has developed the "International Jimei Festival," a tourism version of "Ctrip + Taobao," backed by official endorsement. It hosts large-scale brand events such as Family Fun Festivals, Cross-Strait Temple Fairs, and the Migu Half Marathon, quickly generating business opportunities and transforming "off-seasons" into "peak seasons." By bundling these major events with discounted offers from Jimei attractions and hotels, the district conducts unified marketing, precisely targeting family travelers and offering comprehensive tourism packages to drive overall tourism growth.
Moving forward, Jimei District will continue to innovate in the supply-side reform of the cultural tourism industry. Using the "Jimei Festival" as a platform, it aims to build a comprehensive tourism structure, linking cultural, sports, and tourism projects to create a synergistic effect. This will form an optimized, well-organized, diverse, and advanced tourism system, advancing "big tourism, big industry, big market, and big development." The goal is to genuinely enhance the quality and level of Jimei tourism, establish it as the "most beautiful tourism destination," and provide visitors with an integrated "eat, drink, play, entertain, shop, and learn" experience, achieving the "small goal" of making "visitors to Xiamen stay in Jimei."