‘Divas Hit the Road’: Popular TV show sparks Chinese tourist wave in Czechia
According to the Czech Tourist Authority – CzechTourism, just short of 30,000 Chinese tourists travelled to Czechia in the first quarter of 2025 – a year-to-year increase of roughly 39%. The surge is largely attributed to the successful TV reality show ‘Divas Hit the Road’, whose latest series is filmed entirely in Czechia.
Filming of ‘Divas Hit the Road: Bond of Hearts’ – the 7th series of the program – took place primarily in central Prague, featuring sights like the Old Town Square, the Astronomical Clock, or Prague Castle. The show also visited Český Krumlov – another picturesque setting popular with tourists.
Starring on the show is a seven-member squad of Chinese celebrities – singer Na Ying, actors Chen Shu, Ma Sichun, Li Qin, Gong Jun, Zhang Wanyi and moderator Zhang Yaqi. Each season follows a group of ‘sisters’ and ‘brothers’ as they travel together, organizing and managing their own journeys.
Director of the CzechTourism, František Reismüller, sees enormous value in the visibility provided by the popular show:
“A strong media presence, such as filming a successful reality show with such high ratings, is extremely valuable to the domestic tourism industry. Thanks to these formats we can reach a huge audience, present Czechia as an attractive and authentic destination, and motivate Chinese tourists to visit in person,” he says, quoted in the Czech Tourist Authority’s press release.
Chinese travellers were amongst the most prolific visitors to Czechia prior to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. In 2019, Czechia welcomed over 600,000 tourists from China. Last year, that number was highest since pandemic restrictions eased up at a little under 175,000.
Lukáš Pokorný, Director of CzechTourism's Foreign Representation in China, says that the cultural impact of a show like ‘Divas Hit the Road’ could help significantly in restoring pre-COVID levels of interest:
“Shows of this type have a huge reach in China and a real influence on people's decisions on where to travel. Experience from past seasons shows that the effect on increasing interest in a particular destination can be significant. That is why we are very happy that the creators chose Czechia,” he says.
The fifth season of ‘Divas Hit the Road’ boosted online searches for Saudi Arabia – the series’ filming location – by 772%. Viewership numbers reportedly put up by the reality show tell a similarly conclusive story.
According to China Vision Big Data, previous seasons of ‘Divas Hit the Road’ have reached an audience of up to 860 million, ranking among the most viewed programmes in the country. This also comes with a high engagement rate on social media like Weibo and Xiaohongshu.
Pokorný thinks Czechia could benefit from this commercial boost, and prepares to build on the success of the series:
“We will be bringing a group of journalists to show them what a summer holiday in different parts of the country can look like through a press trip. Then in August we will follow up with an influencer trip we are developing together with European Travel Commission, which will focus on sustainability and gastronomy,” he explains.
In another active attempt to amplify the volume of travel between the two countries, China and Czechia reopened direct air links between Beijing and Prague in June last year. Reismüller claims this too has produced its fruits:
“The restoration of a direct route between Beijing and Prague was one of the most important steps for the return of tourists from China. This line simplifies travel and makes Czechia an attractive gateway to Europe once again. Thanks to the growing numbers, we can see that investment in the development of long-distance routes is paying off. It is not only an opportunity for tourism, but also for strengthening cultural and business ties,” he says.
