This Could be China's Future, Too

WSJ: At night, the Chongqing skyline illuminates with neon lights, reminiscent of the film “Blade Runner”</td>

I thought I was done with international travel, but I might make an exception for Chongqing:

China has long awed visitors with wonders such as the Great Wall and the terracotta warriors buried in an ancient tomb. Now visitors are being dazzled by Chongqing’s vision of a real-world cyberpunk city.

Until a few years ago, Chongqing was largely a trivia answer: the world’s most populous city by some measures, with 32 million people in a South Carolina-size area. World War II history buffs knew it as the Chinese Nationalists’ wartime capital.

Then viral videos of its impossible architecture changed its image. Suddenly, many Chinese and international travelers alike felt they had to visit.

Chongqing welcomed 120 million tourists who stayed overnight last year, up 17% from 2023. In the first half of this year, Chongqing’s border checkpoints handled a record number of foreign nationals—but only 330,000, so overseas visitors who make it here can still brag about visiting a hidden gem.

Chongqing's popularity is not imposed from the top but is a grass-roots phenomenon. Chongqing native Ryan Chen, aka the "Chinese Trump," is a popular social media influencer.



Don't make the mistake of thinking that because China's problems are vast, that it is declining. Its dynamism is larger than anything we can imagine, too.