How Do Chinese People Save Money on Movie Tickets?

The American film “Warcraft” did not do well at theatres in the USA. However, in China, “Warcraft” was a huge success. So, why did this film succeed in China but not in America? The movie was a “bomb” at the American box office but a huge success in China.

1. Chinese people are watching films increasingly- at a rate of 50% more per year.

2. It’s becoming cheaper for Chinese filmgoers if they buy their tickets online and go to the theater.

So, how are Chinese filmgoers buying their tickets online?

The process of “ 电影票团购 (diànyǐngpiào tuángòu)”, or the group-purchasing of movie tickets + the city’s name that you are in (北京 Beijing 、上海 Shanghai, etc.)” through Google or Baidu has become popular. It may save you a lot of money if you’re going to the movies in China.

However, you don’t have to “search” for these discounts!

As with everything in China today, there are apps to help you. These are:

美团 (Měituán )

百度糯米 (Bǎidù nuòmǐ)

大众点评 (Dàzhòng diǎnpíng )

No one likes to go to the movies alone and group purchasing makes it cheap and easy for everyone. In addition to the tickets, you can also buy food and drinks through these apps. Most people in China are using them, so why not?

1. 团购 (tuángòu) Group purchasing

Wǒmen qù Měituán shàng tuángòu liǎng zhāng diànyǐngpiào ba!
我们       去   美团     上        团购      两     张          电影票     吧！
Let’s buy two tickets through Meituan!

Zài jiā yě néng tuángòu dào diànyǐngpiào, zhēn fāngbiàn！
在  家  也  能    团购       到    电影票  ，     真   方便！
We can buy movie tickets through online group-buying at home. What a convenience!

2. 购票 (gòupiào) Booking

Háizǐ men tài xiǎo, búyòng gòupiào.
孩子  们   太  小，  不用     购票。
The children are too young to buy tickets.

Huānyíng shǐyòng wǎngshàng gòupiào fúwù!
欢迎         使用         网上          购票     服务！
Thank you for booking your tickets via Online Ticketing!

1. By 团购 (tuángòu) you can:
A. See the film in 3D
B. Get the best seat
C. Save money on movie tickets
D. Get free food

Jennifer Zhu is a professional Chinese teacher from eChineseLearning. She has many years of Chinese language teaching experience and received her B.A. and M.A. in “Teaching Chinese as a Second Language.”