Dragon boat races boost tourism, cultural consumption in China's Sichuan province

The two-day Enyang leg of the 2026 China Dragon Boat Race wrapped up on Friday in Bazhong City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, drawing large crowds of visitors and driving a surge in local tourism spending through a host of event-linked activities.

Local authorities leveraged the races to create diverse consumer experiences, enriching the holiday with folk custom markets, intangible cultural heritage performances and AR digital dragon boat experiences.

As the influence of the China Dragon Boat Race keeps growing, the event is no longer simply an athletic contest for a festival. It has become an important platform linking various cultural, tourism and consumption activities.

Statistics showed that the boat race is expected to attract more than 800,000 visitors this year, driving a year-on-year revenue surge of more than 30 percent across local industries.

"We have adopted the 'Dragon Boat Plus' model and innovatively launched a dual-event mechanism combining the Super Dragon Boat League and the China Dragon Boat Race. The in-depth integration of culture, sports, tourism and commerce has broken the boundaries of traditional consumption scenarios, allowing the popularity brought by dragon boat races to sustainably boost local tourism and cultural spending," said Zhao Huajun, director of the bureau of culture, radio, television and tourism in Enyang District in Sichuan's Bazhong City.

Dragon boat races boost tourism, cultural consumption in China's Sichuan province

A 28-member press delegation from 19 countries, joined by Chinese state media, has embarked on a week-long tour in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, gaining first-hand insight into a region that also serves as a core area of the Silk Road Economic Belt.

The journey began Friday in Turpan. The first stop was a massive "photovoltaic plus solar-thermal" hybrid project featuring over 20,000 heliostat mirrors, a breathtaking sight that drew admiration from the visitors.

"Obviously, solar energy is used all over the world, but in the way I've seen it here and it was explained to me here, I haven't seen it before, especially since apparently like two different techniques are being combined to produce green energy for China. It's cool," said Stefan Zanev, freelancer for Bavarian Broadcasting.

The delegation also stopped at a Uygur hospital's sand-therapy center, where reporters sampled herbal teas and experienced heated sand treatments.

In the coming days, the group will travel to Hotan and Urumqi to observe the daily lives and work of local communities.

Int'l press delegation visits Xinjiang