City walks step up in popularity

In May, as summer approached, she took a 3.7-kilometer walk through the streets and alleys of Dongsi subdistrict in Dongcheng district. Along the way, she passed art galleries and bookstores as well as landmarks such as the Peking University Red Building and the former site of the Sino-French University.

On one of her walks Zha was surprised to find a small restaurant that offers biangbiang noodles — a popular dish from Xi'an, Shaanxi — behind the National Art Museum of China. "I had never noticed it before," she said. "The food there is delicious and I have recommended it to my friends who have yet to try it."

Closer to home

While city walks are the current trendy pastime, many experts question their long-term popularity.

On travel platforms such as Trip.com, Fliggy and Mafengwo, city walks are the first choice for budget travelers. Some cities have even included them in their cultural tourism plans. Shanghai, ranked the best location in China for city walks, has set up special routes for tourists to experience the old architecture and the modern city.

"In an ever-changing city, its ongoing dynamics are hard to tell unless you walk along a street and see the old houses undergoing changes," said Jin Yi, a researcher with the School of Social and Behavioral Sciences at Nanjing University.

Jin believes the renewed interest in urban environments is largely due to the COVID-19 epidemic, which forced city dwellers to notice what is happening in the vicinity of their homes. Places that may have been only a few kilometers away from residents' homes were suddenly of interest after being ignored for a long time.