The dragon boat races held from Friday to Sunday in southwest China's Leshan City, Sichuan Province, helped boost local consumption with various activities arranged for tourists.
The 2026 National Dragon Boat Championships hosted by Leshan drew over 30 teams made up by more than 700 competitors from across China.
"I came specially from Anhui (Perovince) for the races. The atmosphere on the spot is so lively. The contestants row at amazing speed, very overwhelming," said a tourist.
"I came specially from Neijiang (City). The races are fantastic, and I was really thrilled," said another tourist.
On the sideline of the event, tourists can also enjoy music festivals and delicate specialties.
"I'm from Chongqing (Municipality). All the local delicacies here taste delicious," said a tourist.
Additionally, 10,000 consumption vouchers were issued during the event and local catering and hotel industries said the promotion campaigns are helpful to increase customer flows at their stores.
"We have received nearly 1,000 tables of guests every day these two days. Many of them are tourists from other parts of the country, and our turnover has also increased by about 40,000 to 50,000 yuan (about 5880-7350 U.S. dollars)," said a restaurant owner.
"During the dragon boat races, hotel rooms are in short supply, with all rooms booked out 10 days before the races," said Guo Hanshu, a local hotel manager.
Leshan received a total of 120,000 visitors during the dragon boat races, driving tourism consumption to over 72 million yuan.
Dragon boat races boost consumption in Leshan
