Beijing reimagines industrial sites as tourist destinations

Once industrial sites of production and machines, Beijing's factories are teeming with new life as spaces of creativity, innovation and tourism.

This transformation took center stage on Wednesday at a Beijing industrial tourism promotional event hosted by the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism and the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Economy and Information Technology.

At the event, 11 new demonstration sites were officially recognized, joining 19 existing sites to form a network of 30 industrial tourism demonstration sites across the capital. Together, they showcase how the capital is reshaping its industrial legacy into immersive cultural and travel experiences, part of a broader push to power the city's economy through "industry plus culture".

Beijing has long been a city of craftsmanship and invention, from steel and automobiles to pianos and porcelain. Today, that legacy is evolving into a new attraction — industrial tourism — where visitors can walk through modern production lines, explore creative workshops, and experience how traditional skills meet smart technology, the organizers say.

Zhang Jing, director of the resource development department at the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, says the city is committed to deepening this transformation.

This year's event also marked a concrete step in carrying out an action plan for promoting the high-quality development of industrial tourism in Beijing (2025-2027).

Li Peng, from the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Economy and Information Technology's Industrial Research Center, reveals that the plan envisions building a complete ecosystem where industry, culture and tourism thrive as one.