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BEIJING: China expects a significant rebound in domestic travel during the upcoming Golden Week holiday after the sector was hit by COVID-19 for months, with some sold-out flights and travel platforms reporting an increase in hotel bookings .
The pent-up demand is fueling optimism that the Chinese travel industry has reached a tipping point, with the hope that Thursday’s (October 1) eight-day holidays will pick up a tentative rebound seen in recent months, even as some concern about the virus persists.
The resurgence of China’s travel industry offers a striking contrast to business in other parts of Asia, as well as the United States and Europe, where the coronavirus is still circulating and meetings are restricted.
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The holiday to mark the founding of modern China is traditionally one of the busiest times to travel, and not just at home. Last year 782 million trips were made and more than 7 million people traveled abroad, according to government data.
“Tourism demand that was pent up for nine months will likely be released in these eight days,” online travel platform Trip.com said in a statement, estimating that 600 million trips could be made.
China has largely eliminated its coronavirus epidemic, which emerged in the central city of Wuhan late last year, and many restrictions on domestic travel have been lifted.
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However, few people are expected to venture abroad due to various quarantine requirements around the world and a shortage of flights abroad.
But more domestic air bookings were made between October 1 and September 14 than in the prior year period, with an increase in August, and cheap seats on popular routes, such as Beijing to the southwestern city of Lijiang. , have been sold out, according to Travel. service provider Qunar.com.
Hotel and airline bookings made during the week of Sept. 8-15 surpassed those made during the same period last year, Alibaba-backed online travel platform Fliggy said, and hotel bookings for Golden Week surged. by more than 50%.
Passengers walk at Beijing Daxing International Airport ahead of the China National Day holiday in Beijing, China, on September 25, 2020 (Photo: REUTERS / Carlos García Rawlins)
I wish to fly
Hotel spending during the holidays is expected to rebound to last year’s level, or even see slight growth, according to the research department of China’s Meituan Dianping, whose on-demand service applications range from food to hotels.
“People want to fly somewhere, there is pent-up demand because they are fed up with staying home,” said Mei Xin, a retail analyst at Huatai Securities.
But even so, some caution remains about the coronavirus.
People often have to display health-tracking QR codes, which have played a key role in containing the virus, with some hotels asking guests to be tested for coronavirus before arriving.
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And some families are asked to stay home.
In cities like Beijing and Shanghai, schools have asked parents and students not to go on vacation unless strictly necessary.
Beijing-based television producer Pan Lei, 45, said he felt he had to cancel a family trip to the Yellow Mountain tourist area after receiving a notice from his children’s schools.
“I lost the money I paid in advance,” he said.
But he said it was understandable that there were fears of a second wave of coronavirus this winter.
“Schools want to keep risks to a minimum.”
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