During the super Golden Week, the cultural and tourism scene in Hubei province surged with activity, as millions of visitors immersed themselves in the region’s rivers, mountains, and historical sites.
On October 8, it was time to say goodbye. At train stations, highway exits, and check-in halls, travelers from afar browsed through photos on their phones, reminiscing about the wonderful experiences from the eight-day holiday.
The sea of clouds at Wudang Mountain in Shiyan, the vast expanse of East Lake in Wuhan, the stilt houses overlooking water at Three Gorges Folk Scenic Spot, the cultural IP float parade in Optics Valley, and the time-traveling Guo Jing and Huang Rong on Xiangyang buses—all felt as vivid as yesterday.
This invitation to explore rivers and cultural feasts allowed every visitor to take away not just scenic views, but also unforgettable memories of Hubei.
Dialogue Across Time: Historical Sites Come Alive
« I arrived in Hubei on the 2nd, and now it’s time to go home already. » During the eight-day super Golden Week, a tourist from Beijing spent six days in Hubei. On the morning of October 8, as she boarded her train home from Wuhan Railway Station, she still felt reluctant to leave Hubei’s beautiful scenery behind.
« The holiday is about tuning life to your favorite channel, » she recalled. Her six-day Hubei journey included admiring the vast Yangtze River from Yellow Crane Tower, contemplating Zhuge Liang’s wisdom at Ancient Longzhong, and touching Zhang Juzheng’s handwritten inscriptions in Jingzhou City. This time-traveling experience brought history from textbooks to life.
During Golden Week, Xiangyang’s Ancient Longzhong Scenic Area innovatively launched the « Meet Zhuge Liang: Sir, Please Come Out » immersive script-based activity. Based on Three Kingdoms culture, it allowed visitors to dialogue with Zhuge Liang across millennia through role-playing and mission challenges.
« It’s like unlocking missions, with rewards after completion, » the tourist said. « Three Kingdoms history suddenly came alive before my eyes. Traveling in Hubei is really fascinating. »
Additionally, the « Float Parade » in Optics Valley attracted tens of thousands of visitors. Xiangyang’s pioneering « Martial Arts Theme Buses » revived the Guo Jing and Huang Rong IP, while Huanggang introduced the « Following Su Dongpo » water-based immersive night tour… These innovative cultural IPs revitalized profound historical sites and continuously trended on social media.
On October 1, the Optics Valley float parade amazed the nation. Xiangyang’s « Chivalry Theme » float appeared in Optics Valley, where Guo Jing’s makeup and demeanor were humorously called « ugly-cute » by netizens, quickly trending online. Xiangyang’s cultural tourism department seized the opportunity to launch the « Find the Handsomest Guo Jing » campaign, encouraging public participation in chivalry-themed performances.
On October 4, after the floats returned to Xiangyang, they joined the « Chivalrous Xiangyang Theme Buses » to form a « Chivalry Fleet » for citywide tours, attracting enthusiastic « fan chasing » from tourists wherever they went.
« I couldn’t get a return ticket at first, but later found extra trains were added and managed to get one, » the tourist said.
To assist travelers returning home, on October 8, additional trains were operated on routes including Han-Shi High-Speed Railway, Zheng-Yu High-Speed Railway, and Han-Yi Railway, as well as popular directions like Chengdu-Chongqing and Shanghai-Hangzhou. A total of 309 additional departure trains were scheduled, including 127 overnight high-speed trains to Guangzhou, Yichang, and Xiangyang. Additionally, 35 bullet trains to Shenzhen, Qingdao, and Yichang were operated with doubled capacity to maximize travel availability.
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