During the summer holiday of 2025, the Liaoning Provincial Museum delivered an impressive performance through innovative practices such as high-quality exhibitions, specialized guided tours, holiday research programs, hands-on workshops, immersive performances, brand events, volunteer services, live streaming, and cultural creative product development. These efforts have made it a vivid example of high-quality development in Liaoning’s cultural and tourism sector. Over the two-month summer vacation, the museum welcomed a total of 971,998 visits, marking a 21.93% increase compared to the same period last year. Among these visits, 32% were from Liaoning Province, and 68% were from other provinces in China. The top five sources of out-of-province visits were Heilongjiang Province, Hebei Province, Jilin Province, Shandong Province, and Beijing Municipality. Aside from Shenyang City, the top five cities within Liaoning Province that tourists came from were Dalian City, Anshan City, Jinzhou City, Chaoyang City, and Tieling City.
From July 1 to August 31, the Liaoning Provincial Museum extended its daily closing time from 17:00 to 18:00 and continued to offer reservation-free entry, providing ample visiting hours for the public. Themed exhibitions such as “Mountains and Seas in Harmony·A Unity of Diversities: Liaoning’s Exhibition on Fostering a Strong Sense of Community for the Chinese Nation”, “Affinity of Mountains and Seas·Echoes of the Desert Sands—Meeting Dunhuang in Liaoning”, “When Two Kilns Shine as One: An Exhibition of Ceramic Sculpture from Shiwan and Jingdezhen in the Early Years of the People’s Republic of China”, and “She Walks in Beauty: Women in Classical Roman Time” offered visitors a diverse range of choices with their distinctive themes and rich content. In addition, special discounts for middle school- and college-entrance exam takers, as well as student groups, attracted a significant number of young visitors to the museum this summer.
During the summer vacation, the Liaoning Provincial Museum launched a special educational activity titled “Understanding Dunhuang Ceiling Patterns·Creating a Starry Dream with Your Hands”. This program not only introduced children to grotto art through exhibition hall tours, but also encouraged them to create their own Dunhuang-inspired ceiling collage artwork, allowing them to bring the magnificence of Dunhuang home. The three sessions of this activity attracted a total of 60 young participants. In collaboration with XDF Cultural Tourism in Liaoning, the museum also organized a summer research camp, which featured seven events centered around five major themes. These activities drew nearly 100 students and parents. Additionally, the museum invited intangible cultural heritage inheritors and folk artists to host a total of 35 hands-on workshops, enabling visitors to experience the charm of traditional Chinese culture.
Coordinated by the Liaoning Provincial Public Cultural Service Center, the dance drama National Treasures in Liaoning · Highlights, jointly produced by the Liaoning Provincial Museum and the Liaoning Song and Dance Ensemble, began its resident performances at the museum’s multifunctional hall from July 19. During its first weekend, tickets for all four shows were sold out instantly, with each performance attracting a full house of over 300 attendees. Many visitors arrived 30 minutes early to secure the best viewing spots. The combination of “immersive excitement” during the show and “in-depth cultural interaction” beyond it has brought cultural relics to life and into the spotlight. Following National Treasures in Liaoning· Highlights, the museum and the ensemble also launched a special folk music performance titled Chinese Music in Fashion, which became another major attraction in the museum this summer.
As a meticulously developed brand education program by the Liaoning Provincial Museum, the “Museum Youth Voice” Youth Research and Experience Camp and the 2025 Summer Young Docent Training Program, was launched as scheduled this summer. Following online registration, initial review, and interviews, 52 students from cities such as Dalian City, Fushun City, Benxi City, and Anshan City were ultimately selected through a comprehensive evaluation process. These students attended the training at the museum from August 5 to 9. Additionally, throughout the summer, the museum’s Children’s Experience Hall offered 11 special activities for young visitors, including “Exploring the Lubu Bell”, “Ancient Costume Fun” and so on. These activities engaged over 600 participants.
The Liaoning Provincial Museum further extended its cultural appeal online through live streaming, bringing the museum closer to a broad audience. Over the summer, two live-streamed events, an exhibition tour of “Mountains and Seas in Harmony·A Unity of Diversities: Liaoning’s Exhibition on Fostering a Strong Sense of Community for the Chinese Nation” and a session titled “Multicultural Integration and Heritage”, attracted more than 300,000 online viewers. The overwhelming popularity of the museum during the summer underscores its strong appeal as a must-visit cultural and tourism destination in Liaoning Province.
