Pearl River Night Cruise
Since the beginning of the new year, various places have made moves to attract popularity. There is a city that hardly participates in any overall work but frequently becomes the "top brother" on the hot search list. Yes, this "big brother" is Guangzhou. White-cut chicken, kapok... Guangzhou has been steadily "dream-linked" with various topics, occupying the hot search lists.
But this time, Guangzhou is popular again. The reason why it became a hot search topic turned out to be “too many people come to Guangzhou to travel”. Guangzhou will receive 230 million tourists in 2023. Ctrip platform data shows that during the Tomb Sweeping Day holiday, Guangzhou ranks among the top ten popular destinations for surrounding tourism in the country.
When traveling to Guangzhou, you must visit the Pearl River. Data show that in 2023, the number of tourists visiting the Pearl River exceeded 4 million, a record high, ranking first in the country. During the Spring Festival holiday alone, the total number of tourists to the Pearl River reached 258,600, and the single-day passenger flow reached 39,300. , both hitting record highs. Pearl River Tour is so popular, what secrets are hidden behind it?
Text/Guangzhou Daily All-Media Reporter Yang Chaolu
Picture/provided by interviewee
"One cup, two pieces" creates an "Internet celebrity place" for water consumption
In 1967, Guangzhou Public Transport Group Ferry Co., Ltd. pioneered the "Day and Night Cruise on the Pearl River" water tour business. Guangdong Pearl River Shipping Company, the parent company of Guangzhou Blue Dolphin Cruise Company, pioneered the "Day and Night Cruise on the Pearl River on a luxury cruise ship" water tour business in 1998. Over the past 50 years, Guangzhou has strengthened its development plan for the Pearl River tourism industry, strengthened planning and IP creation from the overall operation of Pearl River tourism, and formed a strong word-of-mouth communication force.
The one-hour Pearl River tour is not only a visual feast, but also a window for tourists to understand the customs of Guangfu. For this reason, major Pearl River tour companies have gradually established high-standard service teams through skills competitions, star assessments, etc., and won The star-rated service provides tourists with a world-class cruise experience. In order to meet the cultural tourism experience of different groups, for different consumer groups such as tourism, business, wedding banquets, couples, families, etc., Zhujiang Travel has developed cruise themed products such as couples travel, family gatherings, wedding banquet charters, and business activities, striving to cover more Consumer groups and consumer needs.
Enjoy the night view outside the boat and listen to the explanation, and watch the performance inside the boat and enjoy refreshments. In recent years, Pearl River Tour has organically integrated the two traditional business cards of Guangzhou, "Pearl River Tour" and "Morning Tea", creating a new consumption experience scenario of "water tour + catering". Now on the "Tea House on the Water" themed ship, tourists can enjoy the beautiful scenery on both sides of the Pearl River while tasting "two pieces in one cup" of Cantonese delicacies. "We strive to create a cruise service that locals often come to and foreigners must come to. Let local tourists enjoy a cup of authentic morning tea on the cruise ship, and let foreign tourists come to the Pearl River twice a year to have a new experience every time." Guangzhou Liu Junwen, product service department of Star Cruises Co., Ltd. said.
In recent years, new cultural and tourism industries in Guangzhou have developed vigorously, and consumption has released new vitality, anchoring the spring breeze of market recovery. Various Pearl River tourism companies have launched water concerts, water live broadcast rooms, water weddings, dragon and lion dances, Cantonese culture, and research and education. , food festivals and other activities on the water, effectively reach the target customer groups, and carefully create a "check-in Internet celebrity place" for water consumption on the Pearl River.
“One Pier, One Characteristics” demonstrates the style of a thousand-year-old commercial capital
On social platforms, Tianzi Wharf, Dashatou Wharf, Canton Tower Fortune Wharf, etc. are known as the must-check-in attractions in Guangzhou, and there have been more than 30,000 related travel guides. In recent years, Guangzhou has made great efforts to promote the construction of "one pier, one characteristic". The beads formed into a chain have driven the pier to revitalize the surrounding cultural and tourism resources, so that every tourist who boards the pier can experience a different tourism experience.
Climb a pier and observe the history of a city. Tianzi Pier is currently the longest-used ferry terminal in Guangzhou and is adjacent to the Beijing Road business district. Climbing up the stairs, you will see the plaque of "Guan Guan Pavilion" telling the history of the Qing Dynasty welcoming and sending off officials a hundred years ago; walking up the stairs, you will see the memorials of Lin Zexu, Sun Yat-sen, Zhou Enlai, Lu Xun, Lin Juemin and other patriots who left their footprints here. The deeds make people feel like they are in history.
It once operated the nationally famous inland river passenger terminal, known as the "Baiyun Airport on the water"; now it has transformed into a complex integrating tourism, entertainment, shopping and catering - Dashatou Wharf. "By upgrading Dashatou Terminal, we can create the IP of Dashatou Pearl River Tour Home Port and revitalize terminal resources such as Taikoocang and Xidi." said Chen Kaixin, general manager of Guangzhou Jinhang Cruise Co., Ltd. Today, Dashatou Pier has a golden coastline that can berth 10 Pearl River cruise ships at the same time. It is equipped with a large parking lot, underground commercial area, and waiting hall building. It is the Pearl River cruise home port with the most complete supporting facilities in Guangzhou.
"Each Pearl River tourism company is accelerating the interaction between ship and shore attractions, linking the attractions along the line into a chain, creating multi-pier, waterfront joint tours, cultural tourism sightseeing lines, and planning to open a three-pier loop from Dashatou Pier to Xidi Pier to Taikoucang Pier. Flights, through the linkage of the three terminals, will drive the consumption desire and enthusiasm of different consumer groups." said the relevant person in charge of the Guangzhou Port Authority.
In recent years, Guangzhou has made great efforts to build Tianzi Wharf, Dashatou Wharf and Canton Tower Wealth Wharf into urban living rooms, cultural corridors and waterfront leisure squares, allowing citizens to immerse themselves in Lingnan culture and Guangfu culture.
"One ship, one theme" shows the charm of Lingnan culture
On group buying platforms, group purchases of Pearl River cruise tickets almost always start with 10,000 tickets. Among them, a cruise company's group purchase tickets priced at 98 yuan per person have sold more than 300,000 tickets. "In accordance with the work goal of 'promoting the quality of Pearl River tourism and helping to build the city brand of Guangzhou', Guangzhou focuses on improving the service level of Pearl River tourism from cruise ships, services, culture, ship-shore interaction and other elements, and promoting the high-quality development of Pearl River tourism." Guangzhou Port Affairs The relevant person in charge of the bureau said that Pearl River Tourism is becoming a new focus in shaping Guangzhou's city brand and stimulating economic growth, and has also become a new business card of Guangzhou's cultural tourism.
The current capacity of Guangzhou Pearl River Cruise is 38 ships with a total of 10,491 passengers. Compared with major domestic cities, Guangzhou has a complete range of cruise ships, ranking first in the country in terms of categories. In terms of cruise ship types, there are luxury high-end cruise ships represented by "Pearl River Jade" and "Pearl River Centenary", luxury cruise ships represented by "Pearl River Prince" and "Pearl River Crystal", as well as economical cruise ships with affordable prices. Every visitor to the Pearl River can return home with great enjoyment.
In terms of special themes, Pearl River Tours has Lingnan culture-themed cruises represented by the "Nanhai Shenhao" and "Pearl River Red Boat", the "Shuirenjia" theme ship that restores the customs and customs of the Danjia people on the water, and the "Shuirenjia" theme ship, which is popular among young consumer groups. Welcome "National Tide on the Water" theme boats, etc. In recent years, Pearl River Tour has continuously upgraded its ships. Following the idea of "one ship, one theme", it integrates traditional Lingnan elements and novel national trend elements, integrating the history and culture of the Maritime Silk Road in Guangzhou, Guangcai, olive carvings, pottery and other extraordinary Material cultural heritage elements are integrated into the cruise ship and displayed on the cruise ship through physical objects, pictures, stories, etc. to meet the preferences and needs of different tourists and continuously improve the quality of the cruise ship.
As a megacity, Guangzhou’s “big hub” is extremely popular. In 2023, Pearl River Tourism received 4.14 million tourists, a year-on-year increase of 235.8%, a record high, ranking first in the country. Guangzhou Pearl River Cruises seizes the opportunity of the recovery and development of the cruise industry and strives to set sail in terms of market vitality, quality improvement, cultural charm, green and low carbon, etc., ranking among the best in many indicators, leading the development of the global cruise industry.
"One Belt, Two Axis and Multiple Nodes" draws the dazzling night view of the Pearl River
The boat moves on the water and people swim in the painting. Behind the night view that makes tourists linger is the night view lighting pattern that Guangzhou has long worked hard to create "a picturesque night sheep city with two axes and multiple nodes".
Why is Guangzhou’s night scene so fascinating? In fact, as early as the late 1980s, Guangzhou began planning the construction of urban nightscape lighting. After systematic and overall improvements at different stages, the city's landscape lighting has gone from "lighting up", "beautiful", "elegant" to "smart" "The leap has gradually formed a "one belt, two axes and multiple nodes" lighting pattern, covering a spatial pattern of about 200 square kilometers.
The relevant person in charge of the Guangzhou Municipal Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau said that through unified planning and arrangement, Guangzhou nightscape lighting uses the Canton Tower as the baton to coordinate and mobilize a total of about 810,000 landscape lighting lights in 10 key areas and 2 long volumes to achieve linkage interpretation, Beauty is shared. At present, Guangzhou nightscape lighting can play media facade interpretation videos in 24 buildings along Yanjiang Road, Haizhu Square, 64 buildings in Zhujiang New Town, CITIC Plaza, Liede Bridge, Pazhou West District, as well as some commercial blocks and CBD buildings. Nightscape lighting in other areas uses static Pattern rendering.
In fact, the lighting of Guangzhou's night scene is not static, but uses "light language" to tell the historical changes and future vision of Guangzhou. Moving along the Pearl River, the night view of Guangzhou slowly unfolds: "Sand Style" and "Past on the West Embankment" show history reshaping memories; "Yue Xiu" and "Legend of Jiangwan" describe the development of Guangzhou; "Light in the Heart of the Sea" and "Galaxy River" "Highlights the Guangzhou city skyline and modern urban charm; "Pazhou Dream Shadow" and "Encounter Painting Exhibition" highlight the future temperament of Guangzhou; "Ten Bridges of Light and Rhythm" tells the story of each bridge with each bridge and scene..."Guangzhou City Landscape Over the Years The orderly and healthy development of lighting work adds unique charm to the city's night scene. Whether it is a night cruise on the Pearl River or a stroll along the river, it provides citizens and tourists with a better visual experience." Guangzhou Lighting Construction Management Center The relevant person in charge said.
Relying on the resource endowment of "Yunshan, Pearl and Water", Guangzhou uses the Pearl River as its context to continue the urban development texture. Cruise services, terminal construction, ship-shore interaction... Guangzhou actively promotes the integration of Pearl River tourism into the new urban development pattern, accelerates the high-quality development of cultural, business and tourism integration, and helps build the city brand of Guangzhou. The popularity of Pearl River tours has also allowed tourists from all over the world to see a Guangzhou that is full of vitality, innovation and hospitality.
Number theory
According to statistics from the Guangzhou Port Authority, a total of 1.0014 million tourists were transported on the Pearl River from January to March this year, a cumulative year-on-year increase of 6.22%.
It is understood that there are currently 12 operating terminals for Pearl River Cruises in Guangzhou, with 36 berths. 10 passenger terminals have been included in the reconstruction and expansion plan, and a total of 19 berths have been reconstructed and expanded, with a total investment of approximately 220 million yuan.
In 2023, Pearl River Tourism received 4.14 million tourists, a year-on-year increase of 235.8%, a record high, ranking first in the country. Also in the "International Urban Cruise Ship Vitality Index Report (2023)" released in 2023, Guangzhou ranked first in the country and second in the world (second only to New York).
In terms of green and low-carbon, Pearl River Cruises is also at the forefront of the country. Currently, its pure electric ship capacity is 10 with 2,987 passengers, ranking first in the country.