The Annual Research Report on China's Cultural and Tourism Industries (2024) was unveiled on Saturday at the 751 Library in Beijing to a combined audience of officials, scholars, journalists, and industry professionals.

A signature academic endeavor initiated by Beijing-based think tank Jinghe Institute of Culture and Tourism four years ago, this year's report was jointly presented by the think tank, Xinhuanet Cultural Industry Research Institute, and Beijing 798 Culture Technology Co Ltd.

According to the launch event, more than 30 scholars spent around three months writing and editing the report, which received the consulship of about 20 industry experts. The full report will be published free of charge later this month to provide valuable decision-making references to individuals working in the cultural and tourism industries.

Fan Zhou, director of the Jinghe Institute of Culture and Tourism and head of the report's writing team, said the 2024 report focuses on the deep intertwining trend between the cultural and tourism industries and various other sectors of the national economy.

"The close collaboration among the three organizations in producing the report also helps break industry barriers, unify industry consensus, making the report's summary more comprehensive and its analysis perspective broader," he said.

The report comprising five chapters discusses the macro socioeconomic environment in 2024 and provides an overview of the general performance, characteristics of the two increasingly integrated industries, and governmental policies related to them in the last year.

The research summarizes the 10 highlights in the Chinese cultural and tourism markets in 2024 and forecasts the top 10 trends that would probably characterize the two industries this year.

The 10 highlights are as follows. Beijing's Central Axis gained UNESCO World Heritage status. The Chinese-developed video game Black Myth: Wukong reaped worldwide popularity. Visa facilitation policies inspired "China Travel" to be a buzzword on overseas social media platforms. The Spring Festival was added to the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The social media craze catapulted cities such as Harbin in Heilongjiang province and Tianshui in Gansu province into hot tourist destinations. China's micro drama market has witnessed exponential growth. Museums retained their appeal to tourists. Popular immersive spaces have driven a deeper integration of culture and technology. China's first domestically made large cruise ship, Adora Magic City, completed its first trial. The hit mini-series To the Wonder, based on writer Li Juan's award-winning essay collection My Altay, sparked huge tourism interest in the area located in Northwest China's Xinjiang autonomous region.