VI
Benjamin Wong, a high school teacher in Singapore, is one of many Asian travelers making a similar choice. This summer, instead of his usual destinations, he chose to stay at a mountain resort at an altitude of 2,600 meters in Yunnan Province, China.
According to Wong, nighttime temperatures in the Yunnan cities of Dali and Lijiang in summer can drop to around 15 degrees Celsius, significantly lower than the usual highs of over 27 degrees Celsius seen in Singapore.
"Aside from weekend trips to Southeast Asian countries, all my longer vacations are geared towards cooler places than Singapore," Wong shared, adding that Europe has also recently experienced unusual heatwaves, so he doesn't want to fly for more than 13 hours only to arrive in a place with even higher temperatures than his home country.
The trend of escaping the heat is causing many Asian tourists to shift their focus to high-altitude mountain resorts.
The heatwave is reshaping the global tourism industry.
Not only are tourists affected, but tourism workers are also having to adapt to harsher working conditions. According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), about 75% of the workforce in Asia works in hot weather, including street vendors, delivery drivers, and many tourism workers.
Extreme heat isn't just happening in Asia. Last month, temperatures in France reached around 40 degrees Celsius due to a heat dome, prompting Parisian authorities to ask organizers of the Fête de la Musique music festival to stop selling alcoholic beverages due to concerns about dehydration and heatstroke among attendees. Spain, the UK, and Switzerland also recorded record temperatures this summer, forcing many outdoor attractions to close or shorten their operating hours.
According to WMO data, Asia's warming rate is twice the global average, making the region one of the most significantly affected by climate change in terms of tourism. Japan is a prime example, consistently setting new records for both international visitors and temperatures, with the highest recorded temperature reaching around 41.8 degrees Celsius. Last year, the country recorded five of the hottest days in meteorological history, leading to the creation of a new Japanese term: kokusho-bi, meaning "extremely hot day".
Although some tourists have shifted to traveling during the off-season or transitional seasons to avoid the heat, summer remains the peak season for the tourism industry due to school holidays in many countries lasting from June to August. The combination of intense heat and large crowds is making the experience at many popular destinations more unpleasant than before.
Hot weather in many countries affects people's lives and tourists' travel experiences.
Nighttime tourism is on the rise, and businesses are changing their operating methods.
To adapt to the new reality, many tourism businesses have proactively adjusted their products to avoid the daytime heat. The experience booking platform GetYourGuide reports adding more evening activities to meet the growing demand from tourists. In Asia, the trend of night tourism – also known as "dusking" – is booming with tours visiting Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto, Japan at night, sunset boat trips on the Mekong River in Thailand, or night walking tours exploring Seoul, South Korea.
According to a representative from GetYourGuide, bookings for activities taking place between 5 PM and 9 PM have increased by 30% globally, with Asia being the fastest-growing market at 70%. Takao Nishina, head of the Japan and Korea markets for the platform, noted that first-time visitors or those wanting to complete a list of popular attractions are often willing to endure harsh weather conditions to avoid missing out on the experience.
Therefore, many businesses have proactively changed their operational methods, such as moving cooking classes from outdoor markets to indoor spaces, or scheduling tours of sumo arenas during the hottest time of day so that visitors can dedicate the cooler mornings to other outdoor activities.
The tour is attracting an increasing number of tourists who want to escape the intense daytime heat.
Night tour of Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto, Japan.
Climate change is inadvertently giving a competitive advantage to some destinations with mild climates. According to Professor Raymond Rastegar, a hotel management specialist at Griffith University (Australia), New Zealand's South Island, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Japan's Hokkaido region, and Australia's Tasmania have all seen an increase in tourist numbers in recent years thanks to pleasant weather conditions between June and August.
The Mongolian Tourism Authority reported a 33% year-on-year increase in international visitors during the first half of 2026, prompting the government to invest in more hotels and attractions in the capital, Ulaanbaatar, to meet the anticipated continued demand. Meanwhile, Tasmania recorded its busiest winter season ever in 2025, with approximately 250,000 visitors between June and August, a 7% increase year-on-year.
Experts note that the seasonality of the tourism industry today no longer depends solely on temperature. Changes in storm paths, longer rainy seasons, and increased humidity are also making the operation of destinations much more complex than before.
According to the Mongolian Tourism Authority, the number of international visitors in the first half of 2026 increased by 33% compared to the same period last year.
Namgyal Sherpa, CEO of Sherpa Hospitality Group in Nepal, said that climate change is altering both tourist behavior and how travel businesses operate. He noted that demand is now more evenly distributed throughout the year, forcing hotels to maintain year-round contingency plans instead of focusing solely on the traditional peak season.
At the Shinta Mani Mustang resort in northern Nepal, the business has to constantly assess weather-related risks, while some popular trekking routes are currently unavailable for extended periods due to unusually high river levels.
With warming rates twice as fast as the global average, Asia is likely to continue to be the region witnessing the most dramatic changes in travel behavior in the coming years, as both travelers and businesses are forced to adapt to increasingly harsh summers.
