Travel agencies in China are monitoring tourists’ queries and online searches after the government on Monday announced eight days off for the 2023 National Day holidays beginning October 1, together with the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival which arrives in late September.
Data from Tongcheng Travel Agency showed that during the last week, international flight bookings for the 8-day-long holidays rose by 35 percent week-on-week, and domestic flight bookings were up by nearly four times.
China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism on Thursday announced the resumption of a third list of group tours to 78 overseas destinations including the US, Japan, Australia and India.
Jia Jianqiang, CEO of Beijing-based online agency 6renyou, told the Global Times that the new group tours list would provide basic policy support for the recovery of China’s tourism industry in the second half of 2023, especially for the National Day holidays and Mid-Autumn Moon Festival holidays.
After the holidays plan was announced, the queries on Tongcheng’s platform immediately doubled, and the volume for international trip searches surged by four times, said the company.
Analysts from Tongcheng said the travel peak and family gatherings contributed to the ticket booking surge. The average domestic airfare remained above 1,000 yuan ($139), surpassing the average fare during the summer season. The average international fare was 6,696 yuan, up by 72 percent over the summer season.
“China’s general tourism industry will embrace relatively fast growth in the second half of 2023, as the country has put forward new measures to augment outings and tourism-related consumption, including adding more international flights,” Jia said.
Travel is unlikely to see a significant short-term surge in the coming two-three months which will significantly boost the industry’s growth, Jia noted.
(Global Times)
