On July 23, the work promotion meeting for building the Greater Zhangjiajie International Tourism Area was held in Changsha. At the meeting, the Hunan Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism, the Development and Reform Commission of Hunan Province, and the Hunan Provincial Department of Finance jointly issued the "Several Measures on Supporting the Construction of the Greater Zhangjiajie International Tourism Area."

The 15 specific policies cover six aspects: strengthening infrastructure development; scenic area renewal and upgrading; brand publicity and promotion; expanding domestic and international tourist source markets; protection, inheritance and utilization of cultural heritage; and the building of a tourism talent pool. At the policy support level, these policies clarify the key priorities for the development of the Greater Zhangjiajie International Tourism Area for this year and next, focusing on addressing the issues of "what to do" and "what results to achieve."

Regional Comprehensive Tourism Map of the Greater Zhangjiajie International Tourism Area

Attachment: Several Measures on Supporting the Construction of the Greater Zhangjiajie International Tourism Area

To thoroughly implement the "Action Plan for the Construction of the Greater Zhangjiajie International Tourism Area" (XZBF [2026] No. 12) and accelerate the high-quality development of the area, the following policy measures are formulated:

I. Support Comprehensive Infrastructure Development

1. Strengthen transport infrastructure for tourism development. Hunan will accelerate the construction of the Tongren-Jishou Railway, promote the commencement of the Qianjiang-Jishou Railway, promote the inclusion of the Huaihua-Guilin High-speed Railway in the railway development plan for the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030), and speed up the launch of survey and design bidding for the Lixian-Zhangjiajie Railway. The province will support the construction of expressways such as the G6025 Dongkou-Tianzhu (Hunan-Guizhou boundary) section, the G6521 Tongren-Tianzhu (Hunan section), and the expansion of the G60 Shanghai-Kunming Expressway Loudi-Dongkou section. The preliminary work for Xupu-Dongkou, Chenxi-Fenghuang, Sangzhi-Cili, Zhangjiajie-Taoyuan, Zhangjiajie-Yuanling, and Sangzhi-Hefeng expressways will be accelerated. Efforts will be made to promote the construction of ordinary national and provincial highway projects such as the G352 Jishou Qianzhou-Fenghuang La'er Mountain Highway (Jishou section), G241 Shimen Qingshuiwan-Huping Mountain section, S306 Sangzhi County Long March Memorial Hall-He Long Park Highway, S251 Jintongshan-Xianggui Bridge section, and S576 Chengbu Tingping Township-Jiangtousi Highway, and initiate quality improvement and renovation of the Sangzhi Service Area at an appropriate time.

2. Increase the frequency of domestic and international flights. Efforts will be made to support increased flight frequencies to domestic hub cities such as Guangzhou, Beijing, and Shanghai; expand inbound routes from countries such as South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Russia; and study support measures for international (regional) passenger routes to and from the Greater Zhangjiajie International Tourism Area.

3. Support the functional, distinctive, and artistic renovation of a number of expressway service areas, expressway cultural and tourism rest stops, facilities along tourism scenic roads, and tourism and leisure blocks. The province will support counties, county-level cities, and districts in constructing tourism scenic roads and public service facilities at key nodes along premium tourism routes.

4. Promote the implementation of a batch of projects for urban renewal and the protection and enhancement of historical and cultural areas. The province will support the construction of historical and cultural preservation and utilization zones such as Fenghuang County, Furong Town, Qianyang Ancient Town-Hongjiang Ancient Commercial Town, and Wugang City's Xizhi Street.

II. Support Scenic Area Renewal and Upgrading

5. Implement a tourism brand building initiative. Hunan will support the establishment of tourism brands such as renowned tourist counties, national 5A-level tourist attractions, national-level tourist resorts, national-level tourism and leisure blocks, UN Tourism's "Best Tourism Villages," and national demonstration zones (units) for cultural and tourism industry development.

6. Implement signage quality improvement projects. The province will standardize and uniformly promote the "Greater Zhangjiajie International Tourism Area" brand matrix, improve the tourism signage system along expressways, national and provincial highways, access roads to scenic areas, tourist attractions, tourist resorts, and leisure blocks, and support the counties, county-level cities, and districts within the Greater Zhangjiajie International Tourism Area in upgrading their signage.

7. Implement infrastructure upgrading and renewal in scenic areas. With 30 key tourist attractions (resorts) as the core, the province will support the construction of facilities such as guided tour and explanation services, telecommunications coverage, safety and emergency response systems for high-traffic attractions (resorts), meteorological monitoring, and extreme weather early warning systems.

III. Support Brand Publicity and Promotion

8. Build a publicity and promotion system. Hunan will support the use of mainstream media, internet and new media, professional media, overseas media, and outdoor advertising media for publicity and promotion, and build an all-media brand communication matrix. The province will support brand promotion activities in key domestic and international tourist source areas, and build an online and offline full-coverage publicity and promotion system.

9. Develop brand-building events. The province will support the hosting of diverse activities such as artistic performances, exhibitions, food festivals, sports events, and folk festivals, create distinctive event brands, cultivate nationally recognized event brands, introduce internationally renowned brand activities, and enhance the domestic appeal and international influence of the Greater Zhangjiajie International Tourism Area. Efforts will be made to support cultural and tourism business entities in innovatively developing "culture + tourism" and "culture + technology" projects, and create integrated development brands.

IV. Support the Expansion of Domestic and International Tourist Source Markets

10. Expand the domestic tourism market. The province will focus on developing premium tourism routes such as the "Zhangjiajie-Langshan-Guilin World Heritage Tourism Route" and the "Zhangjiajie-Jishou-Huaihua Ethnic Culture Tourism Route" to enrich tourism market supply. The province will support the development of themed tourism products centered on world heritage sites, folk customs, red memories, natural ecology, self-driving and RV travel, silver-haired tourism, study tours, wellness experiences, low-altitude sightseeing, anime and esports, and MICE tourism. Efforts will be made to launch a series of cross-regional premium tourism routes, and actively expand domestic tourist source markets such as the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the Yangtze River Delta, the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, and the Chengdu-Chongqing region to increase total tourism reception volume and improve tourism reception services. The province will develop a range of new experiential cultural and tourism activities, support a batch of cultural and creative shopping brands, platforms, and scenario projects, and carry out "village-level" cultural and tourism consumption promotion activities such as "Village BA," "Village Chefs," "Village Livestreamers," "Village Galas," and "Village Songs."

11. Expand the inbound tourism market. Hunan will support travel agencies and OTA platforms in linking with businesses across the tourism industrial chain to enrich and improve inbound tourism products and optimize inbound tourism services. The province will carry out joint marketing, organize participation in international tourism exhibitions, and build overseas marketing networks, actively connect with first-stop cities for inbound tourism, jointly launch "multi-destination" tour routes, and create a second stop for inbound tourism. The province will organize and invite overseas tour operators, media outlets, and internet influencers to Hunan for site inspections and content creation.

V. Support Protection, Inheritance, and Utilization of Cultural Heritage

12. Strengthen cultural interpretation and research dissemination. The province will support the protection and inheritance of fine traditional ethnic cultures; the protection and research of cultural relics and historic sites, intangible cultural heritage, agricultural cultural heritage, traditional villages, and villages with distinctive ethnic minority features; and the construction of the Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Cultural Ecology Protection Zone. The province will also promote systematic and holistic research on cultures in regions such as Wuling Mountain and Xuefeng Mountain. The province will deeply explore the unique connotations of local culture, systematically interpret regional cultural values, and tell the stories of the Greater Zhangjiajie International Tourism Area well, and support the development of immersive cultural experience products based on cultural resources such as cultural relics and historic sites and intangible cultural heritage.

13. Increase the protection and utilization of cultural heritage. The province will support the application for major historical and cultural sites protected at the national level and national historical and cultural cities, and promote the digital protection and utilization of Laosicheng Site, Liye Qin bamboo slips, Chengtoushan Ruins, and Gaomiao Site. Efforts will be made to sort out and verify the stock of revolutionary relics in the Hunan-Western Hubei Revolutionary Base and the Hunan-Hubei-Sichuan-Guizhou Revolutionary Base and promote the construction of new public cultural spaces in museums.

VI. Support the Building of a Tourism Talent Pool

14. Strengthen workforce capacity building. The province will carry out international training in fields such as accommodation, catering, and guided tours, intensify training and learning exchanges for scenic area guides, multilingual tour guides, cultural tourism curators, and digital cultural tourism talents, and implement the "Cultural Tourism Experience Officer" system.

15. Innovate talent attraction, cultivation, and incentive mechanisms. The province will step up efforts to attract and cultivate high-level cultural and museum talents, creative talents, and management personnel in a tiered manner. Efforts will be made to guide universities to add disciplines and majors related to cultural tourism, promote education in less commonly taught languages, deepen industry-education integration, and carry out tour guide practice reform and establish incentive mechanisms for special-grade, senior, and gold-medal tour guides (interpreters).

These measures shall take effect from the date of issuance and remain valid for three years. For matters that meet the provisions of these measures and also comply with the provisions of the province's other support policies, financial support shall be provided in the same year in accordance with the principle of "applying the higher standard without duplication," unless otherwise stipulated.

Chinese source: whhlyt.hunan.gov.cn