In the first half of 2026, Shanghai’s cultural and tourism market maintained solid momentum toward high-quality growth, demonstrating strong resilience.
Inbound tourism sustained robust growth, the consumption mix continued to evovle, and holiday spending provided a notable boost. Shanghai further reinforced its role as an international tourism hub and China’s primary gateway for inbound tourism.
The city’s cultural and tourism market displayed five key trends in the first half of the year.
Shanghai received a total of 5.3149 million overseas visitors, representing a 27.82% year-on-year increase.
Among them, overnight inbound visitors reached 5.0215 million, surging 31.19% year on year.
South Korea, Russia, the United States, Thailand and Malaysia were the top five source markets.
Visitor numbers from Russia jumped 132.05% year on year, while major long-haul markets in Europe and North America generally maintained growth rates above 30%. This points to an increasingly diversified mix of inbound sources.
During the same period, Shanghai welcomed a total of 890,500 visitors from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, up 25.92% year on year.
A total of 1.285 million foreign passport holders used transportation services in Shanghai, an increase of 31.8% year on year, further strengthening the city’s advantages as an international gateway hub.
By consumption categories, spending on tourism services nearly quadrupled, while tourism-, accommodation- and transportation-related consumption all accelerated. The share of service consumption increased significantly, signaling a broader shift from scale-driven expansion to quality-driven growth.
