Across China, a wave of ambitious tourism megaprojects is increasingly stalling or failing to attract visitors, leaving behind unfinished structures and financially burdened local governments. Among the most visible examples is a full-scale replica of the Titanic in Sichuan’s Daying county, where construction began in 2014 with an investment of about one billion yuan and a planned maiden voyage in 2017. Videos circulating on Chinese social media show the unfinished vessel sitting idle in a dockyard along the Qi River, surrounded by scaffolding and cranes, with its exterior now weathered and rusting.
According to China Newsweek, the Titanic replica remains only about 90 per cent complete in its steel structure, while interior outfitting has yet to begin. The Daying county government acknowledged in 2024 that the project was suspended after the investor encountered financial difficulties. The county, which has a population of about 370,000, reported a GDP of roughly 22.1 billion yuan in 2025, placing it last among its regional peers under Suining’s jurisdiction.
The stalled Titanic project is not an isolated case. In Dushan county, under the Qiannan Buyi and Miao Autonomous Prefecture in Guizhou, construction began in 2016 on the so-called “World’s First Shuisi Building,” backed by an investment of 200 million yuan. The project later encountered financial difficulties and was suspended. Both Dushan and Daying represent remote, economically underdeveloped regions that sought to use cultural tourism projects as engines of economic revival, but instead faced incomplete developments and limited economic returns.
Academic commentary cited in the report highlights concerns over decision-making in such projects. Tang Renwu, a professor at the Academy of Government at Beijing Normal University, said that in many counties there is limited scope to develop manufacturing or heavy industry, making cultural tourism a more attractive sector for officials seeking visible achievements. However, he noted that key questions about economic viability and long-term impact were often not rigorously assessed before projects were launched.
The financial consequences have been significant in several regions. In Dushan county, local debt reportedly ballooned to more than 40 billion yuan after a series of large-scale vanity projects, including tourism developments. The county’s debt risks have since been described by officials as “effectively contained,” though full resolution is expected to take time. In other cases, projects such as the “Yaohan Longevity City” in Gongcheng Yao Autonomous County were also abandoned, with officials later facing disciplinary action or legal consequences.
A broader pattern of duplication and overbuilding has emerged across the country. Analysts cited in the report point to widespread replication of themed attractions, including “ancient towns” modeled on foreign destinations. A 2021 analysis found dozens of cities developing similar “Little Santorini” and “Little Kyoto” attractions, while industry data suggests that a significant portion of ancient-town tourism enterprises are now in abnormal operating conditions, including closure or liquidation.
Experts argue that many of these developments suffer from lack of differentiation and weak long-term demand. A professor from Shanghai Jiao Tong University said that many ancient-town projects rely on copying existing models rather than developing unique local cultural identity, leading to limited sustained visitor interest. In some cases, large investments have resulted in substantial financial losses and stalled operations.
The tourism boom has also been linked to broader development strategies combining real estate and tourism projects. During China’s property expansion period, local governments often partnered with developers in large-scale tourism towns, a model described as using tourism to stimulate land sales and infrastructure-driven growth. While some projects initially generated strong investment flows, many later stalled amid debt pressures and changing market conditions.
Reports also highlight that nearly 100 tourism towns may have been abandoned or become financially unviable in recent years, with some estimates suggesting the number could be higher. In several cases, large-scale investments running into billions of yuan have resulted in unfinished or bankrupt developments, underscoring the structural risks associated with rapid tourism-led development strategies across multiple regions.
