"Youth is priceless, go to Kaifeng at night"
The phrase "ye qi" (night ride) has become popular on Chinese social media recently. Groups of students from universities in Zhengzhou, Henan, China have rented public bicycles to go to Kaifeng - a neighboring historical city. On various platforms, videos of people cycling towards Kaifeng have gone viral. The group cycled more than 60 km, holding flags, singing together, and filming with their phones. All of this created a joyful and bustling atmosphere.
According to some reports, between 100,000 and 200,000 people have participated in these night rides. The trend has attracted national and international media attention, especially as local authorities have imposed restrictions on the cyclists, often referred to as the “night riding army.”
Starting from the story of 4 Chinese students cycling 50km overnight to Kaifeng city in Henan province (China) to eat soup dumplings in June, this trend has recently spread unexpectedly. The group of young tourists said they cycled for many hours to reach Kaifeng and enjoy the famous soup dumplings here. Articles related to the trip were shared on social networks, attracting attention.
The 50km night cycling trend from Zhengzhou to Kaifeng (China) attracted hundreds of thousands of participants, causing serious traffic congestion in the city.
The group cycled for five hours, then posted a clip of the journey with the caption: "Youth only comes once." The post inspired hundreds of other students to follow suit. The trend of organizing group night rides peaked in the first two weeks of November, and was also reported by foreign newspapers such as the BBC and The Guardian.
The soup dumplings mentioned above are a traditional dish of Kaifeng city. They are steamed dumplings with a very thin skin. Inside is a filling of pork mixed with spices and hot soup. When eating, diners have to bite carefully to drink all the soup before enjoying the filling and dumpling skin.
The kind of cake that makes hundreds of thousands of people cycle to buy
Impact on local people
The trend was initially supported by the city government. Like many other Chinese cities, Kaifeng is trying to attract more domestic tourists by offering incentives such as free sightseeing. The China Daily newspaper has hailed the trend as bringing healthy activities to a “wave of young tourists”. Many students in Kaifeng are taking the opportunity to explore the historical and cultural attractions of this ancient city, bringing a new dimension to tourism.
An estimated 100,000 to 200,000 people flocked to Kaifeng following the recently emerged movement.
However, locals have complained about overloaded vehicles and litter everywhere. To curb the trend, in addition to weekend traffic restrictions, major bike-sharing platforms Hellobike, DiDi Bike and Mobile said bikes would be locked remotely if riders left designated areas in Zhengzhou. Meanwhile, media have advised students to “grow up”.
Several universities in Zhengzhou have also implemented measures to ban bicycles on campus and require students to obtain permits when leaving the school.
Video shared on social media showed tens of thousands of people jostling to move along the six-lane avenue. Local police were mobilized and used loudspeakers to urge young tourists to leave early. "Youthful freedom does not mean following trends and indulging yourself," one media outlet warned in a comment. "Kaifeng is worth coming slowly and enjoying carefully," another wrote.
Some universities have taken drastic measures, requiring students to return to campus and enforcing lockdowns. By Sunday evening, students posted on Weibo that they were not allowed to leave. Despite the ban, some students in Zhengzhou said they would take a hike, a journey that can take up to 11 hours.
