After three years of absence, the Guangzhou International Lighting Festival, which was held offline, quickly ignited the enthusiasm of citizens and tourists, and booking was popular. This "man-made festival", which began 10 years ago, has been recognized and loved by more and more people, and its influence has been growing. It has become one of the three major lighting festivals in the world. The Lighting Festival is combined with many night experiences, such as the Pearl River Night Tour, the night view of Guangzhou Tower, and night food, which are widely welcomed by foreign tourists, to continuously light up the "night economy" of Guangzhou.
Based on the influence of climate and other multiple factors, "night life" has always been an important part of cultural and tourism consumption in Guangzhou. Night scenery, night entertainment, night food and other rich forms of business are booming, but with the gradual deepening of public awareness of night travel, the demand for night consumption is also expanding, and night travel is reconstructing tourism ecology through the time axis. How should Guangzhou further stimulate "night energy" and tap new growth points of cultural tourism consumption at night?
Let the night turn into a new scene of cultural tourism consumption
On the evening of November 21, the 12th Guangzhou International Light Festival officially opened, with 25 groups of light and shadow art works appearing at the opening ceremony, attracting a large number of citizens and tourists to make reservations. This "man-made festival" once again brings a 10 day immersive lighting feast for citizens and tourists through lighting, LED, laser, video image, scene layout and other forms, using advanced technologies such as large-scale lighting stage devices, 3D imaging, holographic projection, AR and so on. As one of the three major light festivals in the world, Guangzhou International Light Festival has attracted nearly 100 million visitors, becoming a bright city card of Guangzhou.
The bustling night scene is not only a feature of international metropolises, but also an indispensable part of urban tourism development. Lighting is an important cut to open the economy at night, and combined with the terrain, rivers, buildings and other unique features of the city, lighting has formed a new scene of cultural tourism that can be immersed and experienced. In recent years, Chongqing has rapidly become one of the most popular tourist cities in China, which is inseparable from its unique night scenery, among which Hongya Cave is the most famous. According to public statistics, during the Spring Festival in 2023, Hongya Cave will receive 850000 tourists, with an average of 120000 tourists per day.
Guangzhou also has a unique night view, including the Pearl River Night Tour and Guangzhou Tower. As a night scene belt built with the help of the architectural features on both sides of the Pearl River, the Pearl River Night Tour has become one of the must experience projects for foreign tourists to clock in in Guangzhou. Statistics show that during the Mid Autumn Festival and National Day this year, 567 flights were opened for the Pearl River Night Tour, receiving 87100 tourists, an increase of 47.06% year on year. In addition to cruise ships, there are also Huacheng Square, Guangzhou Tower, Shamian, etc. The Haixin Bridge, which has been opened in recent two years as a pedestrian bridge, has become a good place for citizens and tourists to enjoy the night view of Guangzhou.
The night scene is not only for viewing, but also for making the night scene become a new scene of cultural tourism consumption. Guangzhou still has a lot of space for development. As an internationally famous tourist city, Bangkok, Thailand has a special kind of scenic spot that is popular with tourists, that is, the skyline. Bangkok has many skyline restaurants and bars. When the heat dissipates and darkness falls, climbing the skyline to overlook the city at night is one of the most unique experiences of Bangkok tourism. In Wuchuan, Guangdong, the rooftop dining bar has also quietly emerged, becoming a popular choice for young people's leisure and entertainment at night. In Guangzhou, restaurants and bars with the characteristics of overlooking the city landscape are also popular, such as the Joy Bar of Park Hyatt Hotel and the lobby bar of magnificent hotels. Hot locations need to be reserved in advance. However, the new consumption scene characterized by the skyline has not yet formed an atmosphere in Guangzhou as a whole.
Popular entertainment at night attracts young people
"The main purpose of this visit to Guangzhou is to watch the concert and have a two-day trip." Mr. Lin, who came to Guangzhou by high-speed railway from Changsha, said that this is his second time to see a performance in Guangzhou, and the high-speed railway is also convenient to return. Since this year, the offline large-scale concert market in Guangdong has recovered strongly. In the fourth quarter, according to the number of artists who have announced their concert itinerary, Guangzhou ranks first among the most popular concert hosting cities. A report from Mafengwo shows that the booming concerts have brought immeasurable economic benefits to the destination tourism. In the first half of this year, more than 30 stars held concerts in Guangzhou, helping Guangzhou to rank first in the list of popular concert cities.
Once upon a time, KTV was an important part of night entertainment. However, with the popularization of the Internet and the diversification of gatherings, young people began to stop choosing KTV. "Karaoke" represents "local" or "places where middle-aged and elderly people will go". "Now I can't go to KTV once a year, but I have participated in many concerts and music festivals of all sizes." Mr. Ye likes music. This year alone, he grabbed tickets for eight concerts, and even went to Macao to see them. He admitted that, including his friends around him, consumer demand has changed significantly in recent years, "I prefer to feel the passion of concerts in person."
Behind the popularity of the concert, Guangzhou has rich performing arts resources. There are many large-scale performance venues in Guangzhou. Tianhe District alone includes Guangzhou Olympic Sports Center, Guangzhou Tianhe Sports Center, Haixinsha Asian Games Park, etc. In addition, there are Guangzhou Gymnasium in Baiyun District and Guangzhou Baoneng Guanzhi Cultural Center in Huangpu District. In addition to large popular concerts, small and niche performances are also attractive. During the Mid Autumn Festival National Day holiday this year, talk shows, musicals, immersive dramas and other performances became popular choices for night tours. For example, Mahua Kaixin launched many dramas such as "Flying Lies", "Will You Meet Me" and "Mahua Talk Show", and many performances were sold out. The experimental theater of Guangzhou Grand Theater specially planned the "Immersive Opera Week", performing eight original immersive comic operas in a row, of which the average ticket sales rate of six "Night of Apple" exceeded 90%, and three performances were full.
In addition to artistic performances, open night entertainment venues such as Pearl River Bati, which focuses on bar culture, are also gathering places of "night energy" in Guangzhou. Since August, the nighttime consumption scale of Meituan's leisure and play in Guangzhou has accounted for more than 60% of the whole day, and the peak of nighttime consumption is from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. Meituan data shows that since August, the number of orders for food in Guangzhou's dining halls at night has ranked the third in the country, and the number of orders for recreation, sports and fitness at night has ranked the sixth in the country. Among them, the number of orders for Guangzhou Live House at night has ranked the first in the country, with a year-on-year increase of 300%, a year-on-year increase of 440%, and a year-on-year increase of 140% for exhibition orders. Night sports are also hot. Meituan data shows that since August, the number of orders for ball games at night in Guangzhou has increased by more than 250% year on year, and the number of orders for billiards, rock climbing, Thai boxing and other trend sports at night has doubled.
The night tour project in the scenic spot still needs to be "broken"
Summer is the hottest season for night travel. In the face of high temperature, citizens and tourists "live in the daytime and come out at night", which creates huge demand for night economy. According to Meituan and Popular Comments, during the summer vacation this year, the number of keyword searches such as "night tour" increased by 180% year on year. From the ancient city of Xi'an to the innovation park, cultural and tourism markets around the country are innovating and competing for the big night consumption market. Shaanxi Datang Night Inn is one of the most popular night tours in China. According to public information, the daily average passenger flow of Datang Night Inn is 300000 person times. Three night performances of "Everlasting Regret Song" in Huaqing Palace can receive 7500 audiences, which is very popular.
Night tours in Guangzhou scenic spots are also worth mentioning. During the summer vacation, Guangzhou Chimelong Grand Circus is staged twice a day, making it a good choice for parents and children to travel at night. During the period from July to August this year, Zhengjia Polar Ocean World introduced the classic Altman IP, which attracted many classic Olympic fans to visit through cruises, performances, interactive clocking, fun activities and other ways. The museum, together with the beauty troupe, launched a 99 yuan night ticket, which was welcomed by citizens and tourists.
However, on the whole, in addition to a few projects such as Datang Sleepless City, there are still a few "out of the circle" projects in the scenic spot night tour, which is also a problem that needs to be solved in the city night tour. Li Jun, a professor in the Department of Convention and Exhibition Economics and Management of the School of Tourism Management of South China Normal University, pointed out that in the consumption of cultural tourism at night, there are five main problems with the weak sense of existence of night tours in scenic spots: first, lighting and safety problems. Night visits may face the problem of insufficient lighting, which makes it difficult for tourists to enjoy the beauty of scenic spots or feel unsafe, In addition, some natural scenic spots may have risks of wildlife and criminal behavior at night; Second, restricted opening hours. Many traditional scenic spots may be closed at night for safety, protection or management reasons; Third, there is a lack of special night entertainment projects. If the night tour scenic spot lacks special activities or performances to attract tourists, it may reduce the interest of tourists. Compared with the commercial blocks, restaurants and entertainment venues in cities, they are often more attractive; Fourth, the transportation and service facilities are inconvenient. The transportation service at night is not as convenient as that in the daytime. In addition, there may be a lack of catering and other facilities for night service, which will affect the overall experience of tourists; Fifthly, the market promotion and publicity are insufficient. The night tour projects in some scenic spots have not been fully and effectively promoted, which can not attract potential tourists.
How to invite guests from afar to stay?
The richness of cultural tourism consumption at night has a direct impact on whether tourists stay overnight. Li Jun pointed out that in order to "invite guests from afar to stay", it is necessary to find the key points to create a city night tour. He believes that it is necessary to innovate night tourism activities, form night tourism IP, systematically sort out the local cultural origin, deeply explore the local cultural characteristics, create a unique night tourism IP and the concept of a city that never sleeps, and at the same time pay attention to the all-round development of tourism "food, accommodation, travel, shopping and entertainment".
Li Jun said that the city's night activities must be harmonious with the living environment. Night activities in cities should properly control the light and sound, reduce the interference to residents and the impact on the environment, "such as maintaining the appropriate distribution of light in the area, advocating green and environmental protection, controlling the oil, gas, fire, etc. used for landscaping or performance, and reducing unnecessary air pollution." Third, it is necessary to enable the night tour economy through scientific and technological innovation, Use big data and mobile Internet technology to enhance the attractiveness of the night travel market, and optimize the travel experience through real-time data analysis and flow prediction. "At the same time, through the Internet of Things, cloud computing and other technologies, the culture and tourism industry will be further developed, and intelligent systems and high-tech means such as unmanned aerial vehicles and light shows will be used to enhance the performance of tourism performance, creating unique tourist experience and interaction."
The 2023 China Nighttime Economic Development Report released by the China Tourism Research Institute shows that in 2023, the demand for nighttime consumption will be fully restored and the supply of nighttime tourism will continue to expand. From January to August 2023, the average monthly frequency of nighttime travel for tourists will be 3.27 times, and the willingness to travel at night will reach 95%. More than 70% of tourists spend more at night than in 2019. They have strong willingness to pay in the future, and nearly 70% of tourists are willing to increase more spending for good products.
"As a first tier city, Guangzhou has a unique foundation and rich resources and conditions in the development of cultural and tourism consumption at night, which makes it stand out from many cities." Li Jun said that the unique Cantonese culture, food and a more pleasant climate are all factors that Guangzhou can use to enhance its attraction of cultural and tourism consumption at night.
