Millions enjoy city's traditional holiday activities

Shanghai recorded 17.78 million visits during the eight-day Spring Festival holiday which ended on Tuesday, a year-on-year increase of 6.08 percent.

During the holiday, about 100 festive activities were held across the city, including many that embodied traditional Chinese culture.

With UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) inscribing China's Spring Festival on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, the 2025 celebration officially ushered in the first "intangible cultural heritage-version Spring Festival."

Activities such as viewing traditional lantern displays, appreciating intangible cultural heritage items, strolling around bazaars, food tasting, and attending garden parties, which were imbued with a strong guochao (China-chic) flavor, became a new trend for holiday travel in Shanghai, according to the Shanghai Administration of Culture and Tourism.

The 2025 Yuyuan Lantern Fair, the "Shining·Shanghai" Jing'an International light show, the Luodian Lantern Fair, and the 2025 Xinzhuang Lantern Fair all lit up the festival, while the temple fair in Panlong Tiandi, paper-cut and calligraphy classes, and acrobatics and traditional Chinese opera performances on Qingxi Ancient Street let tourists to experience the charm of intangible cultural heritage, according to the administration.

Chinese zodiac themed activities such as a paper-cut exhibition centered on the Year of the Snake in the Wukang Road and An'fu Road block, Year of the Snake flower arrangement activities in Xintiandi, and pop-up celebration activities in the Yuyuan Road art and lifestyle community were also popular options during the holiday.

The city's ancient towns were spruced up with festive elements and various traditional Chinese cultural activities.

In Zhujiajiao Water Town, lion dances and God of Fortune parades were staged, and an intangible cultural heritage bazaar wowed tourists in Jinshanzui Village, the city's last remaining fishing village.

Meanwhile, cruise tours on the city's landmark Huangpu River and Suzhou Creek were favored with close-up magic and talk show performances staged, and pet-friendly voyages launched.

The overall number of cross-border travel orders during the holiday increased by 30 percent year on year, with inbound tourism ticket orders growing by 180 percent compared with last year, and inbound tourism hotel orders increasing by over 60 percent, according to Trip.com.

During the holiday, inbound tourism orders from Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand increased by 130 percent compared with last year, and on Trip.com's overseas platform, the number of tickets for intangible cultural heritage such as lantern fairs and temple fairs soared nearly 750 percent compared to last year.