CGTN Survey Shows Growing Global Interest in Travel to China

At night in Chongqing, a city located in southwestern China, the air fills with the roar of engines as tourists mount shiny motorcycles and cling to strong riders to film personalized videos.

Sales teams actively offer their services to passersby, many of whom were drawn to the city and its cyberpunk aesthetic by motorcycle videos shot against the backdrop of a neon night panorama on social media.

Thirty-year-old Liu Zhangcin told AFP that she flew from Shanghai to Chongqing in the morning, and her main priority is this filming, despite the intense heat, in which she was dressed in one of the heavy motorcycle jackets rented for clients. She noted that even here, makeup artists work to help tourists while she mounted a crimson superbike, hugged her driver, and sped forward, pursued by a videographer.

While many other cities in China have restricted motorcycling, Chongqing has embraced this trend and become a paradise for motorcycle enthusiasts. What started with local riders filming each other for online publication exploded last year due to a sharp rise in tourism to the megacity of 23 million people.

Videos with hashtags related to this trend have garnered a cumulative 1.3 billion views on Douyin—China's counterpart to TikTok, helping to elevate Chongqing's motorcycle culture to a national level and even attracting international recognition.

Twenty-nine-year-old enthusiast and motorcycle instructor Zhang Yuanming claims that the popularity of motorcycles in the city is due to the presence of manufacturers, the complex terrain, and poor traffic conditions. Chongqing has been an industrial center since 1979, when the state-owned military equipment manufacturer Jilin began producing civilian motorcycles in the city. Motorcycles quickly gained popularity, and now the city produces more than a third of China's total motorcycles.

Although electric scooters dominate many Chinese cities due to fewer regulations, Chongqing remained open to gasoline-powered two-wheeled vehicles. Zhang, who teaches students track racing on the outskirts of the city, hopes that tourism will further strengthen the city's reputation as a motorcycle capital. He believes that when tourists take photos and videos, they may start to be interested in motorcycles, learn to ride, and then purchase their own bike.

Zhang also noted a growing interest from students since March, when the local brand ZXMoto attracted attention by becoming the first Chinese manufacturer to win a race in the prestigious WorldSSP class in Portugal. According to him, this encourages young people to get acquainted with motorcycles.

For local riders offering video services to tourists, Chongqing's motorcycle scene presents a business opportunity. Packages of staged photos and videos, where clients are amazed by fast riders passing by city landmarks in slow motion, cost over 200 yuan. Twenty-six-year-old rider Li Yan explained how he now earns up to 1,000 yuan per night from clients, saying that previously they just filmed short videos about themselves, and then people saw how attractive they looked and started asking to ride on their backs.

Li's team has grown to seven people who jointly handle online and street promotion, operate motorcycles, and edit the footage. Each rider attracts about six to twelve clients per night. Although domestic interest has slightly decreased after last year's peak, foreign tourists, who now account for about a third of evening clients, are helping to fill this gap as news spreads abroad.

Alex Shodorowska, a tourist from Britain who learned about the trend on Instagram, shared her impressions:

Summer consumer demand in China has once again attracted the attention of the global community due to the influx of foreign tourists into the country's cities, the viral 'China Travel' trend on social media, and the growing international demand for Chinese cooling products. According to a survey conducted by CGTN among internet users worldwide, 86.1% of respondents believe that China's summer economy is not just a seasonal surge in domestic consumption but also demonstrates how China's vast market creates new opportunities for the global economy.

Since the beginning of this year, China has continued to expand its visa-free entry program, optimized visa-free transit rules, and improved tax refund services for departing travelers, providing international guests with a more convenient and seamless travel and shopping experience. In response, 74.1% of respondents stated their intention to visit China this summer. One poll participant noted that 'China is not only sharing the benefits of its own development but also facilitating people's visits to the country, allowing them to see its achievements firsthand and gain experiences that can offer valuable lessons to other countries. There is no doubt that the new visa policy is attracting more travelers who choose China as their preferred destination.'

As China continues its high-level opening up, travel to China is spontaneously becoming an increasingly likely choice for foreign travelers. This not only increases consumption in sectors such as accommodation, dining, transportation, and shopping but also allows the world to gain an updated view of a real, diverse, and open China through personal experience. In this regard, 89.5% of respondents believe that China shares the benefits of development with the world through its openness. Furthermore, 95.8% assert that China is accelerating its transformation from merely a 'world factory' to a 'world market' driving global consumption.

Simultaneously, cooling products, including air conditioners, fans, ice makers, and sun protection items, remain very popular in overseas markets this summer. Many products have faced sharp increases in orders and even shortages due to huge demand. Thanks to flexible and efficient supply chains, improved product quality, and manufacturing capabilities that quickly adapt to global consumer needs, Chinese companies are continuously turning innovation into new competitive advantages in the global market.

Consequently, 80.1% of respondents are confident that Chinese companies, relying on a complete industrial system and flexible supply chains, are capable of accurately capturing global climate trends and consumer needs, as well as promptly updating their offerings. Overall, 91.2% stated that China's diverse application scenarios and vast consumer market help commercialize new technologies and products while contributing to the growth of global industry. Moreover, 88.2% of respondents believe that China's summer economy not only revitalizes domestic consumption but also brings greater confidence and a fresh impetus to global supply chains and the world economy.

The survey was published on CGTN's English, Spanish, French, Arabic, and Russian platforms. Within 24 hours, it gathered 4,524 responses from internet users who participated in the poll and shared their opinions.