Dragon Trail International’s Xiaohongshu Rankings Report tracks and analyzes performance for national tourism organizations (NTOs), destination marketing organizations (DMOs), airlines, cruise lines, museums & attractions, and hotels. The quarterly Xiaohongshu report builds industry benchmarks and uncovers best practices in digital marketing in the travel sector.
Average Engagements
The Big Numbers
Upon examining the average engagements for each category, we identified 23 accounts with above-average numbers.
In Q1 2024, NTOs demonstrated an average engagement of 1,486, supported by six top-performing accounts, including Tourism Australia and the Swiss National Tourist Office. DMOs followed with an average engagement of 2,368, led by accounts like Discover Hong Kong and the Macao Government Tourism Office. Airlines engaged with an average of 1,449, with top performers including Cathay Pacific and AirAsia. Cruises boasted an engagement of 3,312, with MSC Cruises and Royal Caribbean International leading the pack. Attractions & Museums showcased significant engagement with an average of 9,878, primarily driven by Hong Kong Disneyland Resort and the Museum of Fine Arts Boston. Hotels rounded off the list with an average engagement of 1,098, featuring top accounts like Hilton Hotels & Resorts and Marina Bay Sands Singapore.
NTOs
In the NTO category, Tourism Australia ranked first in total engagements for the quarter, followed by the Swiss National Tourist Office and Tourism New Zealand. Visit Sweden, which ranked 1st previously, fell to 10th place, partly due to a decrease in posting frequency and less engaging or controversial content. Other than this, the ranking for NTO accounts mostly remained unchanged.
Half of the organizations in the top 10 ranking are in Europe, with the rest in Asia and Oceania. Overall, the total posting frequency for national tourism organizations in Q1 2024 is similar to that of Q4 2023, but total engagements decreased by 37.3%, a difference of 18,542 engagements.
The most popular article came from the Swiss National Tourist Board, featuring a fan giveaway for their 2024 calendar. The calendar, made from eco-friendly materials in line with their “Swisstainable” initiative, invited followers to participate by January 21st and encouraged feedback and suggestions for future content. Tourism Australia excels at generating engaging content, with many of its posts being the most popular in the NTO category. Their content often showcases scenic attractions in Australia, combining photos and descriptive texts to highlight the nation’s beauty. Each post typically includes a paragraph starting with “must-visit activities in __,” followed by a list of recommended activities for tourists.
DMOs
Similar to Q4 2023, the competition for the top DMO account on Xiaohongshu was primarily between Hong Kong and Macau, totaling 27,671 engagements and accounting for 55.6% of total engagements. The Catalan Tourist Board and Destination BC fell out of the rankings and were replaced by the Dubai Department of Tourism & Commerce Marketing and the South Australian Tourism Commission.
The top three most popular posts all came from Hong Kong, focusing on Chinese New Year events and activities, the annual New Year float parade, and a guide on how to DIY neon lights. Other popular content included tourist guides, food recommendations, information on upcoming events, and festive celebrations. It is noteworthy that most popular content were videos, which provide a more immersive experience, especially when promoting lively events or scenic attractions. Videos are often easier to consume compared to long paragraphs of text, making them more effective at driving engagement than static photos.
Most popular DMO content by Hong Kong
Airlines
Total engagements for airlines remained mostly the same from Q4 2023 to Q1 2024, with the top 10 airlines with the most engagements remaining unchanged.
AirAsia’s short videos about its cabin crew’s daily lives received high engagements. Compared to more polished videos like tourist guides and event recaps, these short videos filmed with a phone feel more intimate to the audience, helping to create a friendly image, which is crucial for airlines. Other popular content included cabin crew recruitment, holiday wishes, discounted tickets, and live stream notices.
Short videos of AirAsia’s cabin crew
Cruise Lines
As in Q4 2023, only four cruise line accounts were active in Q1 2024. Total engagements for cruise lines decreased by 32.9% (9,741 engagements), and total posts decreased by 10.4% (19 posts). MSC Cruises and Royal Caribbean International generated the most engagements, totaling 16,824 and accounting for 84.7% of total engagements.
Cruise line accounts tend to prefer posting video content rather than photos. This preference may be due to videos conveying the cruise experience more vividly, showcasing various onboard activities, destinations, amenities, dining, and entertainment in a dynamic and immersive manner that photos alone cannot achieve.
(From left to right) MSC’s promotional video for MSC Mediterranean Cruise, video guide on things to do on the Spectrum of the Seas, and MSC’s 117-day world cruise in 2025
Attractions & Museums
Attractions increased engagements in Q1 2024, despite posting only 214 times compared to 291 times in Q4 2023. The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, saw its engagements increase almost fourfold in Q1 2024, moving up from 4th place to 2nd place. The engagement rate for the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, also increased from 0.23% to 1.03%. The Hong Kong Medical Museum’s posting frequency decreased by 53.85%, resulting in a notable decline in both engagements and engagement rate. As usual, Hong Kong Disneyland generated the majority of engagements in this category, accounting for 69.8% of total engagements.
Attractions on Xiaohongshu generate engagement primarily through the sharing of upcoming events and exhibitions, holiday celebrations, the launch of themed merchandise, and fan giveaways. For attractions, the most popular content mostly came from Hong Kong Disneyland, particularly related to Duffy and Friends. This included the launch of Duffy and Friends merchandise, new Duffy and Friends stop-motion animation, and the Easter-exclusive Duffy and Friends series. For museums, the most popular content came from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and was about Augustus Eliaers’ patent model for the library step-chair.
Hotels
For hotels, Hilton and Marina Bay Sands led the Xiaohongshu rankings in Q1 2024, together generating 18,991 engagements, accounting for 66.5% of total engagements. Hilton exhibited a notable surge in engagements despite its posting frequency decreasing by 65.2% in Q1 2024. Hilton’s engagements more than doubled, rising from 4,512 to 9,805, placing it at the top of the ranking. With only five posts, Shangri-La rose to 3rd place in Q1 2024 from 16th place in Q4 2023.
Top 3 hotel posts by Hilton and Shangri-La
Popular hotel content on Xiaohongshu is very similar to that on Weibo, with engagements driven by the popularity of the celebrities featured in the posts. Hilton received high engagements and a high engagement rate with its short reality TV show featuring several celebrities. Shangri-La’s post about the “animal castle” in Sanya attracted wide attention, emphasizing its family-friendly facilities and activities. Marina Bay Sands’ posts about Miracle Coffee x JJ Lin’s concert were also popular.
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