"I felt as if I had stepped into a Chinese painting. The beauty here is as tranquil as a poem, making me feel hard to leave," said Kimberly, a representative of a Greek travel agency, on May 22, after touring Fenghuang Ancient Town. She was participating in an inspection and promotion event in Hunan for European travel agents, tourism media journalists, and social media influencers.

An increasing number of international visitors are flocking to Hunan. Since 2025, Zhangjiajie has welcomed more than 1,800 travel agents, social media influencers, and travel experts from around the world. Like dandelions, they have been carried in all directions by the strong winds of Hunan's growing inbound tourism, spreading the unique charm of Zhangjiajie and Hunan's cultural tourism offerings across the globe.

Following the release of the "Action Plan for the Construction of the Greater Zhangjiajie International Tourism Area" at the beginning of this year,  a new "engine" has been added to Hunan's inbound tourism development. Continuous progress has been made in areas such as brand building, transportation enhancement, business diversification, and service upgrades, thereby accelerating the high-quality development of Hunan's cultural tourism.

Both Inbound Visitor Numbers and Scenic Area Popularity on the Rise

From January to April this year, Zhangjiajie received 326,700 inbound tourist trips, a year-on-year increase of 17.89%, achieving tourism foreign exchange revenue of 44.6539 million USD, a year-on-year increase of 37.14%.

The long-standing pattern of heavy reliance on short-haul Asian markets, primarily South Korea, has also been transformed. In the first four months, Zhangjiajie received 115,700 tourist trips made by tourists from European and American countries, accounting for 35.42% of total inbound visitors, a year-on-year increase of 123.43%. Among them, the number of Russian visitors surged by 350.07%; that of American visitors grew by 76.15%; that of Spanish visitors rose by 185.63%. European and American visitors have shifted from being a "scattered presence" in the past to a "large influx." Zhangjiajie's inbound tourism is transitioning from reliance on a single market to a globally diversified landscape.

Hunan Star Tours International Travel Service, which primarily serves the European and American markets, is hosting this inspection tour. Ding Shibiao, deputy general manager of the travel agency, noted that a series of outreach and invitation initiatives have yielded significant results. The company has already received more than 3,000 visits in the first four months of the year, a 50% increase from the same period last year. “In the past, foreign tourists would avoid peak domestic travel periods such as the May Day holiday, National Day holiday, and summer vacation, but now it seems they no longer mind—many come even during public holidays.”

In the past, the western Hunan region depended heavily on tourist spillover from Zhangjiajie. Now the concept of "Greater Zhangjiajie" has been introduced, which has invigorated the region's neighbors, prompting them to develop their own strengths.

"I don't know how to describe her beauty. I never imagined such a beautiful place existed in Hunan. It's absolutely stunning!" Canadian visitor Martin exclaimed with genuine admiration after recently visiting Furong Town. He added that the scenic area was packed with foreigners. Su Jun, the scenic area's marketing general manager, smiled and said that there are actually even more foreign tourists than he noticed, perhaps because he couldn't recognize many of the visitors from Southeast Asia, Japan, and South Korea. Su Jun revealed that as of May 21, Furong Town Scenic Area had welcomed 250,000 inbound tourist trips this year.

Leveraging the global "China Travel" boom, Furong Town has conducted extensive overseas promotion with significant results. It was shortlisted for the top 100 cases of cultural and tourism brands going global, included in the Trip.Best top 100 night attractions in China, and recognized by Travel+Leisure as a must-visit ancient town in China for 2025. It has elevated itself from a scenic spot near Zhangjiajie to one of the most representative calling cards of ancient towns in China, becoming a sought-after destination for overseas tourists.

The situation where Zhangjiajie used to "support" its neighbors has evolved into one where destinations within the region empower one another.

A Virtuous Cycle Between Accelerating Inbound Tourism and Upgrading Cultural Tourism Quality

Building on its successful outbound travel business, a Changsha-based company specializing in customized tours began expanding into the inbound tourism sector last year. In the first quarter of this year, the number of tourist trips the company handled doubled year-on-year, with over half traveling to Hunan. Zuo Ruifang, founder of the company, noted that the firm primarily serves tourists from the European and American countries. "Our customers mainly go to Zhangjiajie and Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture. Having visited many countries, I have indeed never seen mountains as beautiful as those in Zhangjiajie." She also mentioned that the 72 Unusual Houses has now become a must-visit spot for foreign tourists. Tong Yi, head of the Brand Department at the 72 Unusual Houses, saying, "In the first quarter of this year, the scenic area received over 130,000 inbound tourist trips."

In addition to being interested in Furong Town's waterfall and minority ethnic architecture, Martin was also captivated by the Mud Carnival Festival he happened to encounter. "I glimpsed their ancient history. It was so special!" Zuo Ruifang similarly believes that besides the spectacular peaks and waters, the minority ethnic customs of Greater Zhangjiajie also sparked waves of spontaneous promotion among tourists. Furthermore, factors such as the expansion of visa-free policies, film and television promotions like Avatar, increased international flights, and social safety and stability all contribute to the growth of inbound tourism. "Hunan's rapid inbound tourism growth and the high-quality development of its cultural tourism have formed a virtuous cycle."

As the number of inbound tourists grows, popular destinations for inbound tourism in Hunan have ramped up product and service upgrades to meet the needs of visitors from different countries.

Zhangjiajie has enhanced its visibility and tourist experience through a series of measures, including deep collaborations with top international fashion brands like LV and L'Oréal, implementing 30-minute seamless customs clearance for arrivals, optimizing payment convenience, ensuring full coverage of multilingual signage in scenic areas, and compiling travel guides in 15 languages. Fenghuang Ancient Town and Furong Town in Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture have developed a range of distinctive cultural tourism products, such as intangible cultural heritage-themed live performances, Tujia ethnic folk experiences, Miao ethnic costume travel photography, and specialty food tasting, precisely catering to overseas tourists' quest for pristine landscapes and immersive cultural experiences.

Before visiting Furong Town, Martin had traveled to Zhangjiajie with his family. He repeated, "There is so much beauty in Hunan that foreigners are still unaware of; it deserves to be seen by more people."

This article is from the Hunan Provincial Government www.enghunan.gov.cn.

Translator: Xiao Juan

Chinese source: hunan.gov.cn