SW China's Guizhou leverages technology to boost tourism

During the Chinese New Year holiday, which ran from Jan. 28 through Feb. 4 this year, a young woman named Chen Qian from central China's Hunan Province traveled to southwest China's Guizhou Province with her classmates, entrusting all travel arrangements to her smartphone.

The journey was smooth and enjoyable. "Just by inputting my preferences, I quickly received a personalized itinerary, as if guided by a local friend," she said.

Tourists visit an ancient village in Libo county, southwest China's Guizhou Province, May 16, 2024. (Xinhua/Tao Liang)

This was made possible by "AI-guided Tours in Guizhou," an intelligent travel application recently launched by the province. Through a mini-program, users can access tailored itineraries, route recommendations, and travel planning services.

Guizhou held a conference on advancing its modern industrial system on the first working day after the Spring Festival holiday. The conference emphasized the building of a modern tourism system by creating new scenarios, introducing innovative products and catering to evolving demands.

Guizhou is accelerating the digital transformation of its tourism sector through cutting edge applications. It is driving the deep integration of technology with tourism, offering new scenarios, performances and activities, from virtual adventures and online exhibitions to immersive digital performances, injecting fresh vitality into the tourism sector.

Data shows that during this year's Spring Festival holiday, local leisure activity bookings in Guizhou surged by 52 percent year on year, while inbound tourism orders increased by 59 percent from the same period last year.

Guizhou boasts abundant cultural and tourism resources, including breathtaking landscapes and rich ethnic traditions. As a national big data comprehensive pilot zone and a pilot zone for the innovative development of the digital economy, the province is fostering new quality productive forces at an accelerated pace by focusing on AI and other cutting-edge technologies. Leveraging big data, AI, and holographic imaging, Guizhou's smart tourism sector has seen new vitality.

On Feb. 6, visitors stepping into the Guizhou Long March Cultural Digital Art Museum, known as the "Red Ribbon," were transported through time to relive the historic Long March thanks to advanced digital technologies including AI, holographic imaging, and multi-dimensional mechanical movement. During its one-year trial operation, which started on Oct. 22, 2023, the "Red Ribbon" had welcomed over 1 million tourist visits.

Guizhou has successfully combined resource development, visitor attraction, and service enhancement to drive tourism growth. In 2024, the province reported a 10.4 percent increase in tourist visits and a 13.3 percent increase in total tourism revenue compared to the previous year.