With China's annual Spring Festival around the corner, China's travel market is expected to see a dramatic increase in people heading to the warmer domestic resorts.
A mother and her daughter from northeast China's Liaoning Province play in Bo'ao, China's south Hainan Province on Jauary 16. [Photo: xinhua]
With China's annual Spring Festival around the corner, China's travel market is expected to see a dramatic increase in people heading to the warmer domestic resorts. Beach and island bound tours are to lead the outbound travel markets, the State Tourism Bureau revealed recently.
Australia, Africa, coastal areas and islands have topped the list of the most favorite destinations during the golden week this year. It is estimated that as of the end of last year, over 70% of the package tours on offer had already been booked, among which beach holiday packages almost all had been sold off.
Another trend is that high quality packages are gaining more and more popularity as tourists focus more on hotels and aviation companies, as well as dining. The concept of a casual holiday is especially favored by family tourists aged over 40 with generous incomes and rich travel experience.
Along with the Spring Festival, Valentine's Day which falls during the golden week also attracts a large group to romantic island destinations in Southeast Asia.
On the other hand, since tourists have shown great interest in experiencing different things in their travel, tours going to the poles, world heritage sites, and shopping and cruise tours are becoming fashionable among upper-class and senior consumers.
"Twice as many of our self-guided tours have been booked through the Spring Festival compared to last year," says an official at China Youth Travel Service.
Statistics show that the price of domestic tours has risen by between 5% and 10%, while outbound tours have stayed the same, and the price of inbound travel has decreased. The price is expected to rise after February 10 and drop again after February 17, with the boom falling on February 14.
