What is the Dianping Must-Visit List, and how are places chosen?
The Dianping (大众点评) Must-Visit List (必玩榜) ranks places to go and things to do, chosen only from real users' reviews. In 2026 it published a separate list for Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and overseas: 474 places in 33 cities and regions, including 30 in Malaysia across Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Kota Kinabalu.
How does Dianping choose Must-Visit List places?
Visitors choose them through their reviews. Dianping says the list is selected only from real users' reviews, with no manual nominations and no commercial partnershipsThe Beijing News, 2026-09-01. It rests on large numbers of genuine in-store reviews, which show a place's strengths and weaknesses alikeChina Business Journal, 2026-09-01.
In the 2026 selection cycle, reviews of things to do outside mainland China rose 57% year on year, and the number of reviewers rose 50%The Beijing News, 2026-09-01. As Tao Xuexuan, Meituan (美团) vice president and head of Dianping, put it, the list reached so many cities and regions "not as the platform's one-sided choice, but because our users' needs and footsteps had already led there."
Dianping has not published a scoring formula, weighting or entry threshold. What it has published are its principles, and they all come back to one thing: real visitors' reviews.
What selection principles has Dianping published?
Zhao Yan, who heads Dianping's star-rating and rankings business, said the 2026 Must-Visit List went global as part of a full upgrade, "to use a list Chinese travellers made through their own visits to help more users find, faster and better, experiences that cannot be copied anywhere else as they travel the world." The principles the platform has stated are summed up here.
- Genuine reviews: chosen only from real users' reviews.
- Users recommend to users: the list comes from users' own recommendations.
- Real visits: built on large numbers of genuine in-store reviews.
- Strengths and weaknesses: reviews show both.
- Free of commercial influence: no manual nominations either.
- Must-Eat heritage: carries on the Must-Eat List's ten-year approach.
- In no particular order: listed places are not ranked against each other.
Can a venue apply or pay to get on the Must-Visit List?
There is no application form and no place to buy: the list looks only at real users' reviewsThe Beijing News, 2026-09-01. For a venue that does its job well, that is good news. The list follows what visitors actually experience, so great visits and genuine reviews are the best groundwork there is.
A representative of an eco park on Penang Hill put it this way: more and more Chinese visitors came, shared their reviews and photos on Dianping, "and voted us onto the Must-Visit List", helping more travellers discover a side of Malaysia few people know.
MerchantNgin (赢商), Dianping's official partner in Malaysia, helps venues get that groundwork right: a complete Chinese store page with good photos, and thoughtful replies to reviews, so Chinese visitors can find you, understand you and want to come. The list itself stays with the platform and its users.
Which Malaysian places are on the Must-Visit List?
The 2026 list includes 30 Malaysian places in Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Kota Kinabalu, mixing city culture, Nanyang character and island sceneryThe Beijing News, 2026-09-01.
The list shown at the ceremony has many familiar names: the Petronas Twin Towers, Merdeka Square, the National Museum, the National Mosque, KLCC Park and Jalan Alor in Kuala Lumpur; an eco park on Penang Hill, Penang's street art, Kek Lok Si Temple and the Clan Jetties in Penang; and Tanjung Aru Beach and the Api Api Night Food Market on Gaya Street in Kota Kinabalu. The list is in no particular order.
After publication, traffic to the listed Malaysian places rose 109% compared with beforeThe Beijing News, 2026-09-01. That is what listed places saw; who gets listed is decided by visitors' reviews.
- Kuala LumpurTwin Towers · Jalan Alor
- PenangKek Lok Si · Clan Jetties
- Kota KinabaluTanjung Aru Beach
What does a place get once it is on the list?
Listed places receive a Must-Visit List plaque and an operating guideKrASIA, 2026-09-11. Dianping also runs an official assistant for listed merchants: a WeCom (企业微信) account with dedicated staff who contact them and answer questions about running the business36Kr, 2026-09-01.
Above all, they get seen. Tao Xuexuan said that by following Chinese travellers, Dianping "meets their decision-making needs in different destinations, and lets more local merchants be seen." In Malaysia, traffic to listed places rose 109% after publication.
- A plaquePresented at the ceremony
- Operating guideFor listed merchants
- Official assistantWeCom · dedicated staff
- More visibilityMalaysia traffic +109%
How is the Must-Visit List different from the Must-Eat List?
The Must-Eat List (必吃榜) ranks restaurants; the Must-Visit List ranks places to go and things to do. It carries on the Must-Eat List's ten-year approach of users recommending to users, and widens it from eating to playingThe Beijing News, 2026-09-01. In 2026 both lists held their overseas award ceremony together in Kuala Lumpur, on 26 August36Kr, 2026-09-01.
For a Malaysian venue owner the scope is wide: besides classic sights, the list covers bars, cafes, performances, markets and special local experiencesThe Beijing News, 2026-09-01. So it is not just landmarks: a bar, a cafe or an experience business has every reason to look after its reviews on Dianping.
| Compared | Must-Visit List | Must-Eat List |
|---|---|---|
| What it ranks | Places to go: sights, bars, cafes, performances, markets and special experiences | Restaurants |
| How it is chosen | Only from real users' reviews, with no manual nominations and no commercial partnerships | From real diners' reviews, with no manual nominations and no commercial partnerships |
| Malaysia, 2026 | 30 places · 3 cities | 45 restaurants · 5 cities |
| Award ceremony | 26 August 2026 · Kuala Lumpur | The same ceremony |
Must-Visit List: frequently asked questions
What is the Dianping Must-Visit List?
It is Dianping's list of places to go and things to do, chosen only from real users' reviews, with no manual nominations and no commercial partnerships. In 2026 it published a separate list for Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and overseas, with 474 places in 33 cities and regions, and held the award ceremony in Kuala Lumpur on 26 August.
What kinds of places can be on the Must-Visit List?
Besides classic sights, the 2026 list outside mainland China covers bars, cafes, performances, markets and special local experiencesThe Beijing News, 2026-09-01. The Malaysian list mixes landmarks such as the Twin Towers and Kek Lok Si with beaches and a night market. Whatever the type, the selection rests on visitors' genuine reviews.
Can a venue apply for the Must-Visit List?
There is no application form: the list is chosen from real users' reviews, and Dianping has not published a scoring formula or entry threshold. The most useful thing a venue can do is keep its store page complete in Chinese with good photos, give every visitor a great experience and reply to reviews with care, so its reputation builds naturally.
Does getting on the Must-Visit List help business?
Platform data says it does. After the 2026 list was published, traffic to listed places in Malaysia rose 109% compared with beforeThe Beijing News, 2026-09-01. Listed merchants also receive a plaque, an operating guide and an official WeCom assistant with dedicated staff. Places are decided by visitors' reviews, so the best start is a strong reputation.
Which places in Malaysia are on the Must-Visit List?
The 2026 list includes 30 Malaysian places in Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Kota Kinabalu. The list shown at the ceremony includes the Petronas Twin Towers, Merdeka Square and Jalan Alor in Kuala Lumpur, an eco park on Penang Hill, Kek Lok Si Temple and the Clan Jetties in Penang, and Tanjung Aru Beach in Kota Kinabalu. It is in no particular order.
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