Shanghai to launch new round of consumer vouchers worth $70m

Shanghai will launch a new round of consumer vouchers worth 500 million yuan ($69.6 million) in the second half of 2025 to boost spending across dining, tourism, entertainment, culture, and sports sectors, local authorities announced Friday.

The enhanced voucher program introduces several improvements, including the debut of cultural vouchers accessible to nationwide consumers and the switch of the tourism vouchers' distribution from a lottery system to a "first-come-first-served" basis, according to Zhu Min, director of Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce.

The cultural vouchers, valued at 30 million yuan, can be used for various performing arts including drama, opera, ballet, puppet shows, concerts, traditional Chinese opera, live house performances, and immersive shows. Discounts will be provided ranging from 30 yuan off 100-yuan purchases to 400 yuan off 1,000-yuan spending.

For tourism, the program introduces rural homestay vouchers offering 150 yuan discounts on 500-yuan purchases to promote countryside tourism. Hotel stays will feature tiered discounts from 90 yuan off 300-yuan stays to 360 yuan off 1,200-yuan stays. Tour vouchers will provide discounts ranging from 50 yuan for 100-yuan purchases to 75 yuan for 150-yuan spending.

In the dining sector, 350 million yuan has been allocated for restaurant vouchers. Consumers located in Shanghai can participate in a lottery from July 26 to 28 for the first round, with results announced on July 30. The vouchers will be available in 90 yuan for bills over 300 yuan, 180 yuan for bills over 500 yuan, and 400 yuan for bills over 1,000 yuan.

Movie vouchers worth 45 million yuan will be available from August through November, covering major holidays. Consumers can claim vouchers twice daily, with single-person discounts of 20 or 30 yuan and couple options of 40 or 60 yuan.

The sports segment will allocate 30 million yuan, split between fitness vouchers for 20 million yuan and sports event tickets for 10 million yuan. While fitness vouchers targeting Shanghai residents offer discounts from 5 yuan off 10-yuan purchases to 80 yuan off 200-yuan spending, sports event vouchers welcome both domestic and international consumers with discounts up to 800 yuan for 2,000-yuan purchases.

Previous rounds of the voucher program have shown positive results, said Luo Zhisong, chief economist of Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce. Participating restaurants reported a 25 percent increase in offline business volume during the first half of 2025, with notable growth in family and group dining.

The satisfaction rate among dining consumers exceeded 70 percent, with 54 percent of respondents reporting increased dining out frequency compared to six months ago, Luo added.

Local authorities also emphasized that both consumers and merchants must strictly follow the program rules, warning against voucher arbitrage, fake transactions, and other violations.

The vouchers will be valid through December 2025, with specific redemption dates varying by category. Distribution will be handled through various platforms including UnionPay, Alipay, WeChat Pay, Taopiaopiao, Maoyan and a fitness map WeChat mini-program developed by the Shanghai Sports Bureau.