World · East Asia & Pacific · 4 hrs ago
Chinese tourists try simulated typhoons and floods
Chinese visitors are paying to experience simulated disasters at centres offering typhoons, floods and other emergencies.
Leon Lv travelled from Chongqing to Hangzhou to try a flood simulation and learn how to stay safe.
At Lvxing Base, a 200,000-square-metre facility, participants face powerful simulated water surges in a controlled setting.
The experience is part of a growing interest in “dark tourism,” where travellers seek intense or unsettling activities rather than only visiting famous attractions.
China faces increasingly frequent extreme weather, and disasters affected 67 million people in the country in 2025.
Since 2024, local governments have been instructed to promote immersive disaster education through simulations.
Lvxing plans five more centres in China over the next three years and says it also intends to add earthquake and fire simulations.
Chinese tourists are visiting simulated disaster centres to experience typhoons, floods and other emergencies in a controlled setting.
Lvxing Base in Hangzhou stages typhoon and mudslide scenarios at a 200,000-square-metre facility.
Visitor Leon Lv said the flood simulation taught her how to stay calm and position her body to protect herself.
Interest in these experiences is part of a trend described online as “dark tourism”.
China’s government instructed local authorities in 2024 to promote immersive disaster education.
- Who
- Chinese tourists, including 28-year-old Leon Lv, are taking part in disaster simulations.
- What
- Visitors experience simulated disasters such as typhoons and floods, with the stated aim of learning how to respond.
- When
- Lv travelled to Hangzhou last year. The article was published on 16 October 2026.
- Where
- Lvxing Base in Hangzhou, eastern China; similar experiences are offered at centres elsewhere in China.
- Why
- Some visitors want excitement, while others want to understand how disasters feel and learn how to stay safe.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Lvxing Base’s 200,000-square-metre facility opened.
Local governments were instructed to promote immersive disaster education.
China recorded its highest number of hot days since records began and was hit by 10 typhoons.
Leon Lv travelled more than 1,300km to Hangzhou to take part in a disaster simulation.
- Facility
- Lvxing Base covers 200,000 square metres.
- Opening
- Lvxing Base’s facility opened in 2024.
- Participants
- Lv joined a group of 20 in the simulation.
- Expansion
- Lvxing Base plans to open five more centres in China within three years.
- Typhoons
- China was hit by 10 typhoons in 2025.
What people are saying
I never experienced a typhoon. I don’t know how it will feel and what will happen. I just have seen it on the news.
One thing I learned is how to stay calm and protect myself during a flood. I learned how to use the right body position to stay safe.
I don’t deny that many people come because they want excitement,
The new generation of Chinese travellers want to experience a place rather than simply see famous attractions