(Yicai) Sept. 25 -- China will hold more than 25,000 cultural and tourism activities and allocate over CNY330 million (USD46.4 million) in subsidies to attract more tourists and boost consumption during the eight-day National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holiday, according to an official.

Efforts will be made to enhance supply during the holiday, Miao Muyang, director general of the industry development department of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, said on Sept. 17. A variety of high-quality products and activities, such as performances, plays, tourism tours, family entertainment, and night consumption, will be held in the period, he added.

This year’s Golden Week holiday will run from Oct. 1 to 8 and include the Mid-Autumn Festival, which falls on Oct. 6. China expects over 800 million tourists to travel in the period, with domestic tourism revenue likely to reach CNY750 billion (USD105.4 billion), up 4.6 percent and 7 percent, respectively, from last year’s seven-day holiday.

Local governments and enterprises strive to create viral hits, generate hot topics, hold performances and events to attract tourists, and offer consumption vouchers and preferential policies to stimulate consumption.

Yunnan province yesterday unveiled cultural and tourism featured activities, preferential measures, and seasonal trip products for the National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holidays.

On Sept. 22, Sichuan province announced plans for sports events, performances, cuisine experiences, films, television shows, and over 1,300 culture and tourism activities. It also launched a series of packages comprising discounted event tickets, scenic spot tickets, and accommodation worth over CNY50 million.

Guangdong province recently said it will issue CNY20 million (USD2.8 million) in cultural and tourism consumption vouchers.

The cultural and tourism industry is growing rapidly because people need to relieve pressure from work, improved infrastructure has made traveling more convenient, the elderly have more time to travel, and self-media marketing has popularized traveling, Pu Yongjian, a senior tourism economic advisor to the Chongqing municipal government and professor at Chongqing University, told Yicai.

However, there are still some problems that need solving, Pu added. For example, there is a serious homogenization of scenic spots, which are focused too much on short-term goals, neglecting long-term development, he noted.

Editor: Futura Costaglione