Updated
Updated · Xinhua · May 26
Liu Lichao Leads Tailored Shanghai Cycling Tours as China Travel Boom Lifts Inbound Tourism in 2024
Updated
Updated · Xinhua · May 26

Liu Lichao Leads Tailored Shanghai Cycling Tours as China Travel Boom Lifts Inbound Tourism in 2024

1 articles · Updated · Xinhua · May 26

Summary

  • Liu Lichao left finance in 2024 to become a full-time inbound tourism planner, building customized cycling tours for overseas visitors in Shanghai.
  • Cycling became his core format after he found foreign clients relaxed more on bikes, making conversation easier and turning the ride into a two-way cultural exchange.
  • Shanghai routes focus on everyday city life rather than landmark-hopping, taking visitors through the former French Concession, alley houses, Nanchang Road villas and local snack stops.
  • The tours reflect a wider inbound-travel surge as the "China Travel" hashtag spreads on global social media and Shanghai serves as many visitors' first stop in China.

Insights

Will personalized tours redefine China's tourism, or remain a niche in a massive, state-supported market?
China's tourism is booming, but can its digital payment systems overcome the friction for foreign visitors?
As 'authentic' China goes viral, is local culture being preserved or simply repackaged for TikTok?