Golden Week Marketing: When Should Brands Reach Chinese Travellers?
Happy Mid-Autumn Festival! 🥮
It's a time for togetherness and sharing. For many young Chinese travellers, it also marks the start of one of the longest travel periods of the year.
This year, the three-day Mid-Autumn break runs straight into the seven-day Chinese National Day holiday. With three days of leave, travellers can turn it into a 13-day trip.
Over the past two weeks, several brands have asked me: "Is it too late to do something for Golden Week?"
For a campaign, maybe. But there’s still more you can do.
When a Chinese traveller searches for you, what do they find?
Social media is the leading source of travel inspiration for Chinese outbound travellers, and for those under 35, Rednote (Xiaohongshu) ranks especially high. This year, the 18–24 age group is also showing the fastest growth in Golden Week bookings.
These travellers don't only use Rednote before they leave. They use it on the street.
Flights and hotels are booked in advance. But where to eat, what to buy and how to spend the afternoon are often decided on the spot, by searching "伦敦下午茶" and reading what other travellers have posted.
That search result is your Golden Week campaign, whether you planned one or not.
So here's a five-minute test: open Rednote and search for your brand.
Do you have a consistent Chinese name? Are there real posts from visitors? Or is there nothing at all?
Then pay attention to the Chinese travellers coming through your doors over the next two weeks. Give them an experience genuinely worth sharing,they aren’t only today’s customers. What they post after leaving is what other travellers, and perhaps next year’s customers will find when they search.
Golden Week isn’t just a sales moment. It’s where next year’s discovery begins.
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