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🇸🇬 Singapore /Culture & Society

China's Xiaohongshu App Fuels Tourism Boom, Creates Photographer Competition

From The Straits Times · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Xiaohongshu, China's popular lifestyle app, is significantly influencing the booming domestic tourism industry.
  • The platform, similar to Pinterest, allows users to share photos and videos, driving footfall to photogenic "daka" or "check-in" spots.
  • While boosting lesser-known destinations and businesses, the app also contributes to issues like overtourism and over-reliance on platform traffic.

Professional photographers at Beijing's tourist hotspots face fierce competition, partly fueled by Xiaohongshu, China's massively popular lifestyle app. This platform, often called "China's Instagram," has profoundly shaken up the tourism industry as domestic travel reaches record levels. Users leverage the app, which resembles Pinterest, to discover new destinations and plan itineraries around visually appealing locations, known as "daka" or "check-in" spots.

more customers to flock to him while putting a massive amount of pressure on the rest of us

— Li GengA photographer in Beijing describing the competitive pressure from social media-savvy rivals.

Photographer Li Geng, 18, at Beijing's Shichahai area, exemplifies the pressure. She charges 10 yuan per photo, but many competitors boast significant social media followings, including one with 45,000 followers on Xiaohongshu who offers lower prices. "That has caused more customers to flock to him while putting a massive amount of pressure on the rest of us," Li told AFP, noting she can "only rely on calling out to people on the street to get customers."

Domestic travel in China surged in 2025, with over 6.5 billion trips recorded, a more than 16 percent increase year-on-year. Xiaohongshu's user base has also expanded to 350 million monthly active users. The app has been instrumental in promoting lesser-known businesses and directing tourists to unconventional places, such as Zibo, an industrial city that went viral for its barbecue skewers.

only rely on calling out to people on the street to get customers

— Li GengA photographer in Beijing explaining her reliance on street solicitation due to a lack of online following.

For many younger travelers, Xiaohongshu is now the primary source of travel inspiration. Mina Chen, a 20-year-old student, used recommendations from the app to plan her Beijing trip, finding itineraries for "citywalks" that included dining and transit routes. "It is now indispensable (to me)," she told AFP. However, this trend also brings challenges, including overtourism at popular spots and businesses becoming overly dependent on the platform's traffic, according to Ming Yii Lai, a senior strategy consultant.

It is now indispensable (to me)

— Mina ChenA student from Hunan province describing her reliance on Xiaohongshu for travel planning.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by The Straits Times in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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