Now, Beijing, Xinjiang, Yunnan, Sichuan, And Hainan See Traffic Battles As Trip.com, Ctrip, Fliggy, Qunar, And Meituan Compete — Driving Up Xiaohongshu Ad Costs And Reshaping China Tourism, Here’s More To Know

Monday, July 21, 2025

But connected nan constrictive streets of Beijing, nan blanketing deserts of Xinjiang, nan misty atom terraces of Yunnan, nan panda-thronged highlands of Sichuan and nan sun-drenched beaches of Hainan, a quiet conflict is raging, which has thing to do pinch proscription aliases weather. It is simply a conflict for visibility successful nan integer space, and successful galore cases a conflict that mini and midsize recreation agencies are progressively losing. The progressively precocious costs of advertizing connected Xiaohongshu, mostly owed to fierce introduction of ample online recreation agencies (OTAs) specified arsenic Trip. com Group, Ctrip, Fliggy, Qunar and Meituan, nan commencement of nan grind of tourism trading successful China was fund battles and keyword wars.

Ad Costs for Travel Keywords Spike connected Top Destinations

So person recreation businesses that ore connected important destinations abroad. Keywords associated pinch areas specified arsenic Xinjiang, which has been a destination for escapade recreation and taste tourism, person seen their cost-per-click prices spike into nan hundreds of yuan — a immense magnitude of money for a niche operator. By contrast, words associated pinch favourite destination cities, specified arsenic Tokyo, aliases pinch ideas for illustration “homestay” and “scenery retreat,” person jumped 20% to 50%, while successful immoderate cases costs person doubled from what they were successful early spring. This accelerated value escalation has caught galore mini recreation players disconnected balance, leaving them to either give much of superior aliases opt retired from nan level altogether.

Now, a awesome content-centric societal level is acting much and much for illustration a hunt motor trading system, wherever nan highest bidder gets nan champion placement. Bidding connected Xiaohongshu rewards those pinch larger budgets, truthful that nary matter really existent aliases compelling nan content, mini players are efficaciously priced retired of visibility.

Trip. com, Ctrip, Fliggy, Qunar and Meituan Take Over nan Digital Ad Space

Central to nan displacement are 5 manufacture giants: Trip. com, Ctrip.com, Fliggy, Qunar and Meituan. Since May, these OTAs person poured much of their trading budgets into Xiaohongshu, throwing disconnected nan site’s equilibrium and turning it into a capital-rich battleground. Trip. com and Ctrip, siblings beneath nan aforesaid parent, person been pioneers, pouring millions of dollars into run bidding. Fliggy, which is backed by Alibaba, has travel aft position associated pinch hep younker destinations, specified arsenic Yunnan and Hainan. Known for fund recreation packages, Qunar is going aft measurement pinch fierce keyword targeting, particularly pinch long-tail keywords related to backpacking and fund tourism. Meituan, champion known for its nutrient transportation and section services, has been increasing its recreation arm, and pinch Xiaohongshu it is promoting section homestays and staycations successful places for illustration Beijing and Chengdu.

The mixed effect of these giants coming together successful nan Xiaohongshu ecosystem has led to a seismic displacement successful nan competitory dynamics. The algorithm, progressively shaped by paid bids, marginalizes integrated contented from independent hosts, guides and agencies that had been nan lifeblood of recreation storytelling connected nan platform.

Small Travel Operators Are Being Left Behind

K, nan proprietor of an escapade circuit agency based successful Xinjiang, said nan costs of attracting 1 visitant done Xiaohongshu has go exorbitant, pinch each portion of ill-judged contented aliases targeting resulting successful a costly failure. For smaller agencies, each and each click is now a nonstop deed to already-slim profit margins. “And everything that you’d built up complete 2 years of integrated storytelling and slow, dependable maturation was wiped retired successful a matter of weeks erstwhile nan title knowledgeable this summation successful CPCs,” added S, who runs a boutique homestay business successful Yunnan.

For galore smaller operators though, it’s not a conflict they tin fight, says manufacture expert Yuanshan Xiao. Some of that is because they don’t person nan years of blase advertizing expertise, ample imaginative departments aliases integer strategists that elephantine OTAs do. Nowadays, nan monthly advertizing fund for exposing your marque connected Xiaohongshu will thin to beryllium hundreds of thousands of yuan, meaning that this is unsuitable for immoderate business which operates astatine a gross separator of little than 20%. If your return connected advertizing walk is not higher than 1:5, you’re moving for nan platform, not for your business,” Xiao observed.

Transition to Douyin and WeChat arsenic Substitutes

Therefore tons of mini and mean agencies are leaving Xiaohongshu, and making much and much resources to Douyin aliases WeChat. Today they bring cheaper customer acquisition options, and much ‘relational’ trading opportunities. There’s little title for keywords connected Douyin, for example, wherever recreation influencers and operators tin scope audiences pinch unrecorded streaming and short-form video without having to compete successful nan aforesaid cutthroat keyword bidding wars.

WeChat lands and locks successful nan likes of nan Lyft board’s astir valuable asset: repetition customers and word-of-mouth advertizing WeChat’s mini-program ecosystem and group trading channels connection a much closed-loop exemplary for customer relations and booking services charismatic to agencies chasing repetition customers and referrals.

The Increasing Influence of Xiaohongshu connected Travel Decision-Making

Even pinch soaring advertisement prices, Xiaohongshu continues to beryllium 1 of nan astir impactful integer platforms connected Chinese consumers’ recreation considerations. By mid 2024, nan level had 320 cardinal progressive monthly users. 70% of its users usage its hunt usability and six searches are done connected mean daily. The consequence has made Xiaohongshu a large destination to observe places, scheme trips and publication user-generated reviews and recreation diaries.

Its effect connected outbound recreation patterns is conscionable arsenic inarguable. With much and much group starting their recreation investigation connected Xiaohongshu, nan level will power recreation tendencies not only wrong China but besides crossed Asia. But being transformed into a CPC-dominated level whitethorn not beryllium conducive to a divers practice of voices that affects nan travellers determination by commercialized alternatively of authentic content.

China’s Tourism Industry Bounces Back, But Unevenly

More than 94 cardinal inbound visitors were received successful nan reporting period, arsenic shown by information published by nan Ministry of Culture and Tourism connected China’ tourism opinionated beardown successful betterment aft years of recreation blockage. Moreover, home tourism remains a beardown economical stimulant, pinch Beijing, Sichuan, Yunnan, and Hainan each witnessing important maturation successful tourism walk and footfall.

But now, nan proliferation of adblocking package is besides putting section recreation businesses successful these provinces astatine a disadvantage. And though location is simply a nationalist promotional push for AAAA and AAAAA scenic sites, galore operators successful much outlying areas are uncovering it difficult to get themselves noticed arsenic postulation migrates to nan pockets pinch nan astir financial resources down their promotions.

What to Do: Tactics and Solutions

According to experts, smart pivots are basal for mini and medium-sized agencies successful nan existent environment. Rather than conscionable bidding against each different and focusing solely connected CPC campaigns, recreation entrepreneurs request to attraction connected building an absorbing brand. This could beryllium creating a distinguishable institution marque aliases making usage of individual branding — transforming agency founders aliases nan hosts into well-known integer faces.

Another extremity is to raise nan ratio of advertizing conversion. Small budgets are besides an option, arsenic agelong arsenic contented is highly focused, genuine and deployed wisely. Using societal features for illustration influencers inviting friends, co-oping pinch location tourism bureaus and creating localized storytelling run each thrust higher ROI than accepted bidding connected keywords.

Government backing mightiness beryllium key, too.‐‐‐What group are saying”No opus is safe from skrrt skrrt. Subsidized integer trading workshops, grants for mini recreation operators and provincial tourism offices moving pinch mini businesses are ways that entree to integer platforms tin go much democratic.”

Looking guardant for Chinese Tourism

Travel is astir exploring, bridging gaps, and sharing stories. But successful nan integer present, that tone is wished much and much by algorithmic vulnerability and fund limitations. Still, location is hope. Travellers still want an authentic experience, and nan touring manufacture relies connected caller voices, caller stories, and thing different.

The cardinal to surviving for mini operators successful areas specified arsenic Xinjiang, Yunnan, Hainan, Sichuan and Beijing is adaptability. But those who adopt contented innovation, dispersed their bets crossed platforms and put successful marque loyalty could find a measurement retired of nan morass. As nan lawsuit whitethorn be, precocious advertisement bids aliases no, nan saga of connecting inquiring minds pinch nan beauty of nan landscapes and cityscapes of China must move connected — and there’s a communicative fresh capable for it elsewhere.