China News Service, Xiangtan, June 22 (Zhang Xueying) From the idle Shaoshan School (old campus) to being transformed into an immersive theater experience place, to the 8K light and shadow drama "Most Reminiscent of Shaoshan Chong" being selected as a new space cultivation pilot for China's smart tourism immersive experience; from Wanlou·Youth Pier being awarded From the national-level nighttime cultural tourism consumption gathering area to the renovated Yaowan historical and cultural district, the intangible cultural heritage experience is deeply integrated with youth fashion... As the 6th Hunan Tourism Development Conference approaches, the red city of Xiangtan is frequently "popular".
How does red tourism break the “old-school” impression? In recent years, Xiangtan has focused on the development positioning of "Red Hot Land Youth Xiangtan", using digital technology, immersive experience, and youth creativity as breakthrough points to transform the rich red culture into a "daily experience" that can be participated in, consumed, and socialized, and polished the classic red business card represented by Shaoshan.
Wanlou, which has been idle for many years, has become a cultural and tourism landmark in Xiangtan, attracting people to check in. Photo courtesy of Wanlou Youth Wharf Scenic Area
Revitalize idle assets to make daily “financing in”
"Central Hunan is graceful and beautiful for eternity, and there are more heroes in the world than in one county." Xiangtan, Hunan Province has preserved 339 red resources such as Comrade Mao Zedong's former residence, Dishui Cave, and Maohu Water Village. It gave birth to the older generation of proletarian revolutionaries such as Peng Dehuai, Luo Yinong, Huang Gonglue, and Chen Geng, and is known as the "cradle of China's red culture."
With rich red resources, distinctive spiritual symbols, and outstanding educational functions, how can they be integrated into daily life in a sustainable way and become a life scene that people are willing to actively enter and experience repeatedly? Since the start of preparations for the 6th Hunan Tourism Development Conference, Xiangtan has insisted on revitalizing existing assets and refraining from large-scale demolition and construction, allowing idle assets to become a new carrier of red cultural tourism.
The originally idle Shaoshan School (old campus) has been transformed into a Shaoshan School ideological and political education research and practice camp through micro-renovation. Visitors can randomly walk into a classroom and start an experiential ideological and political class with sitcom actors. "In the past, ideological and political courses may make children feel serious. We hope to break this concept and create a more relaxed and immersive atmosphere to encourage them to review those eventful years together." said Chen Haoqian, an ideological and political teacher at the Shaoshan Ideological and Political Education Practice Center.
It is understood that among the 25 key cultural tourism projects of this Hunan Tourism Development Conference, social investment accounts for 93.77%; of the 13 conference observation projects, more than 80% are upgrades to existing projects or revitalization of existing projects. Shaoshan Railway Station, which was founded in 1967 and has transported more than 20 million passengers, has also been transformed into a "Railway Time Journey" immersive experience base, taking on a new lease of life after being "sleeping" for many years.
"Standing here, the history of development from steam locomotives to Fuxing is clearly visible. We can feel the power and speed of the country's development. The history learned in textbooks suddenly has warmth." Zou Shouzhao, a student from Yueyang, Hunan, said with emotion.
Xiangtan has also simultaneously implanted new business formats such as light catering, handicraft workshops, and red script sales in the urban area, attracting young people to stop and spend, check in and share. Wanlou, which had been dormant for nearly 10 years on the banks of the Xiangjiang River, was relit. Yangmeizhou, a deserted island in the middle of the Xiangjiang River, was transformed into an urban pastoral. Unused houses in the green heart of the Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiang River gathered into an "Internet celebrity" village... The resources came to life, the scene became hot, and the red memory was no longer cold and alienated, but became an everyday life within reach in the streets and alleys.
In the Yaowan Historical and Cultural District in Xiangtan, Hunan, many foreign tourists drink tea and chat here. Photo by Zhang Xueying
Create an immersive experience to make history “tangible”
Red culture not only needs a “place” for display, but also needs to be “in the eyes” from “books”. In recent years, Xiangtan's red cultural tourism is undergoing an "immersive revolution" that is still flowing deep. Through technological means and systematic arrangement, scattered red landmarks are connected into a cultural tourism route that can be walked, seen and felt.
Entering the Shaoshan Red Five-Star Theater, on the 2,450-square-meter stage, 468 programmable LED flexible light strips form the world's largest "light and shadow matrix". Together with the 570-square-meter 8K ultra-high-definition curved large screen, hydraulic water stage and lifting stage, the light and shadow curtain titled "Most Reminiscent of Shaoshan Chong" slowly opens.
"This is my first time to experience high-tech stage equipment up close. The fantastic combination of light and shadow left a deep impression on me, as if it really took me into this period of history." Zhang Mixuan, a first-year student at National Middle School in Huaihua Mayang Miao Autonomous County, Hunan Province, walked onto the stage after the performance and touched the lifting device with her own hands, trying to explore the "secret" behind this light and shadow interpretation.
Xia Zhi, brand promotion director of "Most Reminiscent of Shaoshan Chong", said that after three iterations and upgrades, the sitcom has achieved a qualitative change from "traditional text" to "fusion of light and shadow". With the blessing of 8K ultra-high-definition curved screen, 3D naked-eye technology and other technologies, red culture is no longer just abstract text and static images, but touches people's hearts with a highly impactful visual language.
The Sixth Hunan Tourism Development Conference is about to open, and Xiangtan’s “immersive” experience will also usher in a highlight moment of concentrated display. The opening ceremony of the conference and the "Strive for a New Era" red classic ideological and political class performance combine stage art and digital interactive technology to create an immersive, youthful red art feast; cultural tourism project observation activities set up a number of high-quality routes, running through the Shaoshan Red Holy Land and the "One River and Two Straits" urban cultural tourism new space, panoramically presenting a new picture of global tourism of "Red Shaoshan, Vibrant Xiangtan, and Charming Changsha-Zhutan."
In the Yaowan Historical and Cultural District, which is the core observation project, 69 buildings have been upgraded and renovated. Tanbao Teahouse has been put into trial operation, with the highest average daily reception exceeding 300 tables. The Tanbao Bus Station Exhibition Hall, which has attracted much attention, will fully display the profound code of Xiangtan. Head culture and a century-old transportation history; street greening, waterfront landscape, and night view lighting have been upgraded throughout the area, and culture and tourism are deeply integrated, allowing Yaowan to achieve "one scene at a time during the day and radiance at night", becoming an all-weather cultural and tourism block that can be immersed, socialized, and consumed.
In the Red Five-Star Theater in Shaoshan, Hunan, people are watching the sitcom "The Most Reminiscent of Shaoshan Chong". Photo by Zhang Xueying
Deepen regional coordination to make dividends “visible”
"My Shaoshan Trip" has received more than 450 batches and 1.1141 million teachers and students; during the "May Day" period, Shaoshan tourist area received more than 400,800 tourists, a year-on-year increase of 32.29%; Wanlou·Youth Pier It attracted 300,000 visitors in the first 10 days after the market opened... Behind the data is the clear trajectory of Xiangtan's accelerated transformation from a "red resource city" to a "red tourism strong city" by deeply integrating culture and tourism, culture and technology as the core engine.
Pang Yang, director of the teaching and research department of Shaoshan Ideological and Political Education Practice Center, said: “What we have to do is to make every old site ‘speak’, so that every child can find a connection point with history here.”
In order to seize the opportunity of hosting the 6th Hunan Tourism Development Conference and accelerate the construction of a modern cultural tourism industry system rich in Xiangtan's characteristics and advantages, Xiangtan City has also recently issued "Several Measures for Xiangtan City to Promote the High-Quality Development of the Cultural Tourism Industry", launching 19 practical measures around five directions: project support, product supply, integration scenarios, regional collaboration, and environmental optimization, telling the story of the integration of cultural tourism across the region.
This exploration path of seeking increment from stock is also the epitome of Hunan's construction of a world tourism destination. In the past four years, Hunan has successively held tourism development conferences in five cities and created a number of cultural tourism benchmark projects, pushing the province's total cultural tourism industry revenue to a new level of one trillion yuan. The influence of the "Three Hunan and Four Waters·Meet Hunan" brand has continued to increase.
This conference is the first time a city in the Changsha-Zhutan metropolitan area has hosted a provincial tourism development conference. Among the supporting activities, the "Changzhutan Cultural Tourism Consumption Shopping Season" and the "Vibrant Changzhutan" commercial concert have implemented a unified ticketing platform and points mutual recognition mechanism; the Changzhutan Red Venue (Scenic Area) Alliance has also been put into operation. A total of 47 key red venues in Changsha, Zhuzhou and Xiangtan are working together to build a regional red resource linkage and sharing platform.
The three cities have also established a bottom-line mechanism of "one acceptance, coordination among the three places, and time-limited settlement." This means that tourists do not need to repeatedly move between the three cities if they encounter problems in any city. According to statistics, during the Qingming Festival holiday in 2026, Xiangtan Panlong Grand View Garden received a total of 19,500 tourists, a year-on-year increase of 62.99%; Yaowan Historical and Cultural District received a total of 15,500 tourists, a year-on-year increase of 24.13%, including many tourists from Changsha and Zhuzhou.
"I can now take the subway from Xiangtan to Changsha. I heard that the intercity buses in Changsha, Zhuzhou and Changsha will be intensified in the future, and there will be more places to travel on weekends. I am looking forward to that day." said Zhang Qian, a citizen of Xiangtan. (over)
