AI creation events for cultural tourism have become more visible across China. Some focus on promotional films, while others bring together AI video, audiovisual collaboration and digital tourism. Their formats differ, but the practical aim is similar: give local stories, destinations and city identities more ways to reach an audience.
Representative events
The list can be extended. Heilongjiang has announced a second university competition on AI and VR for digital cultural tourism painting. Shanxi tourism authorities have published information about a cultural tourism AI short drama contest in Yuncheng. Anhui has also run an AIGC cultural tourism and broadcasting application contest, while Sichuan has held a university competition for smart cultural tourism works. These activities use different formats, but all connect local tourism content with AI or digital tools.
Xinjiang has held an AIGC promotional film contest centred on its landscapes, ethnic culture and travel routes. In 2026, Shandong launched an AIGC video creation contest for cultural tourism. Anhui hosted an audiovisual cultural tourism AIGC co-creation and investment matchmaking event, moving the conversation from submissions toward collaboration and project development.
Sichuan's Department of Culture and Tourism launched the “Digital Tianfu: AI Paints Bashu” digital tourism AIGC contest. Bashu culture offers rich visual material, from landscapes and architecture to historical imagination. AI makes it easier to explore different treatments, while the creator still has to check cultural and factual details.
What these activities actually test
A tourism video needs more than attractive images. Viewers want to know why a destination matters and what they can experience there. A local tradition also needs context. Buildings, costumes, dialects and customs should be researched before they become visual decoration.
For creators, a contest is a compact production exercise: topic selection, copy, storyboards, character and setting design, generation, editing, voice and subtitles. For tourism organisations, it can reveal teams that understand local content and can carry an idea through to a finished piece.
Before entering, check the theme, duration, aspect ratio, rights to supplied materials and delivery format. Accuracy and disclosure of generated content also matter. When a contest idea needs to become a commissioned film, AI promotional video production services can help connect the concept with a team that handles storyboards and delivery.
