Alipay reveals new travel and spending patterns during China’s 2026 Golden Week

Alipay’s data from China’s 2025 Golden Week shows booming outbound travel, shifting spending patterns, and record cross-border digital payments.

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China’s extended eight-day Golden Week 2025, coinciding with both the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day, has ignited a powerful rebound in cross-border tourism. According to new data released by Alipay, Chinese travelers are venturing abroad in record numbers, marking one of the busiest holiday periods since international travel fully resumed.

Between October 1 and 3, the top destinations for outbound spending through Alipay were Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore. These traditional favorites reflect a continued preference for nearby Asian destinations offering familiarity, convenience, and digital payment readiness. However, new patterns are emerging, with Greece, Laos, Nepal, Portugal, and Turkey recording the fastest year-on-year growth in Alipay transactions, highlighting growing interest in culturally rich and less crowded destinations.

Alipay data shows that half of all Chinese outbound tourists used the platform to make purchases abroad during the holiday. Spending was concentrated in five categories: clothing, groceries, jewelry, dining, and cosmetics — underscoring the growing appetite for lifestyle and premium retail experiences while traveling.

Health awareness also played a visible role in travel behavior. A joint report by Alipay, navigation app Amap, and AI health platform AQ revealed a 32% increase in health consultations among Chinese travelers abroad during the first three days of Golden Week compared with the previous month. The most common issues were mild — such as digestive problems, fever, and acclimatization — but the surge signals that travelers are taking greater precautions when abroad.

AQ, the AI-powered healthcare app developed by Ant Group, now provides more than 100 digital medical services including doctor searches, health consultations, and report analysis, making it a trusted travel companion for outbound tourists.

At the same time, international arrivals to China also rose notably during Golden Week, driven by expanded visa-free access, the ease of digital payments through Alipay, and enhanced tax refund services in key destinations.

Also Read → China’s 2025 Labor Day travel spending surges via Alipay+

Between October 1 and 5, Alipay recorded a 500% increase in payments by foreign visitors in China using Alipay Tap!, its QR code-based contactless payment and customer engagement solution launched in mid-2024. Major Chinese cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Guangzhou, and Chengdu have upgraded their instant tax refund systems, simplifying the process for international visitors. Shenzhen, in particular, saw a 70% rise in tax refunds processed via Alipay within the first five days of the holiday.

Foreign travelers in China can now make seamless payments by scanning QR codes or tapping to pay with Alipay, after linking an international credit or debit card. In addition, visitors from 12 countries and regions can pay directly with their home e-wallets through Alipay+, further bridging the global digital payments ecosystem.

This year’s Golden Week 2025 demonstrates how digital ecosystems like Alipay are reshaping global travel flows — from outbound spending and traveler health support to inbound retail and tax-free shopping — connecting millions of travelers and merchants across borders with a single scan.