"This trend, which began a few years ago, aligns with guests' needs in the pandemic time and we expect to see a lot of development in future," Chang says.

People from Generation Z, born between the mid-1990s and the early 2010s, have gradually become the major force behind tourism consumption, and they want diverse and high-quality theme park products, says Li Yi, vice-president of OCT's tourism research institute.

"The (OCT) theme parks will further improve quality, enrich tourists' entertainment experience and improve satisfaction levels via continuous innovation, renovation and upgrades," Li adds.

The development of China's digital economy will promote the diversification of products, better services and smarter management in tourism.

"Domestic theme parks are expected to accelerate intelligent construction, upgrade online functions such as reservation and timeshared control, and use scientific and technological means to create new amusement equipment to improve tourist involvement and experience," Li says.

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