Getting going again
The improved outbreak situation, reopening attractions and warm weather are coaxing travelers to hit the road after months at home, Yang Feiyue reports.
Chinese travelers are flocking to major scenic spots nationwide after being cooped up at home for months during the novel coronavirus outbreak.
Tens of thousands of tourists wearing facemasks showed up at Huangshan Mountain in eastern China’s Anhui province during the Qingming, or Tomb-Sweeping Day, holiday from April 4 to 6.
The mountain resort’s administration had to temporarily shut the gates after visitor numbers soon surpassed its daily capacity of 20,000 on April 5.
About 4,000 scenic spots have reopened since COVID-19 has essentially been brought under control in China.
Over 2,800 destinations, including more than 140 top-rated attractions, currently offer online booking through Shanghai-based online travel agency Trip.com.
Many have developed favorable policies, such as discounted or free entry and accommodation, to attract visitors.
More than 30 star-rated scenic spots in Anhui’s Huangshan city offered free access to local residents from April 1 to 13, the city’s culture and tourism bureau reports.
The pent-up energy after isolation and good weather in Huangshan contributed to the traveler numbers during the holiday, says an official with the bureau.
Several other scenic spots in Anhui, including Xidi and Hongchun villages about 40 km from Huangshan Mountain, also reached capacity during the holiday and had to tell many travelers to reschedule.
Shanghai’s Bund was packed with shoppers and visitors in early April after being vacant for weeks, and some restaurants required bookings.
Beijing has continued strict rules about leaving the city and 14-day quarantines for people entering from outside.
But residents have crowded openair spaces, such as Chaoyang Park. The park recorded 30,000 visits on March 31 and had to limit numbers afterward.
About 43 million traveler visits were made in China during the three-day Tomb-Sweeping holiday, down 61 percent compared with last year, the China Tourism Academy reports.
Tourism income during the holiday stood at 8.26 billion yuan ($1.16 billion), an 80 percent decrease from last Qingming holiday.
Although both figures represent sharp drops, travelers have shown great satisfaction with services, the academy says in a report.
Areas with low risk of COVID-19 have seen evident rebounds.
Tourism in the Xinjiang Uygur and Tibet autonomous regions, as well as in Qinghai, Jilin, Yunnan, Anhui and Sichuan provinces, has recovered by more than 50 percent of the level of the holiday last year, data from the China Tourism Academy and China Unicom show.
Transportation bookings doubled during the three-day holiday, compared with the same period in March, Trip.com reports.
The agency’s hotel bookings increased by nearly 60 percent month-on-month.
Most travelers are opting for trips within 200 kilometers from home.
Short-distance-tour bookings through Trip.com have tripled in April compared with March. Most are for weekends.
“The recent short-distance tour prices are the lowest in a decade,” says Li Xuepeng, marketing officer with Trip.com’s short-distance-travel business.
“Many scenic spots, hotels and other travel businesses are offering special deals to encourage customers to go out after the epidemic.”
In other words, travel is currently cost-efficient, he says.
Airlines and hotels are also offering big discounts.
Most flights between major cities, such as Beijing and Shanghai, are less than 300 yuan this month.
Travelers driving their own cars have also been hitting the open road in central, southwestern and eastern China, according to big data from navigation-service provider AutoNavi.
Sichuan’s provincial capital, Chengdu, has become a popular destination for road-trippers since late March, with crowds driving to experience spring blossoms.
Major domestic travel agencies have developed safe tours.
Trip.com rolled out private group packages for three to six family members or friends.
All vehicles are meticulously sterilized. Guides, drivers and passengers have their temperatures taken. And medical and disinfection supplies are prepared.
E-commerce giant Alibaba’s travel-business arm, Fliggy, is offering online booking for over 20,000 hotels that follow stringent sterilization procedures and scenic spots.
Beijing-based online travel-service provider Qunar has initiated a safety-service commitment that ensures all service providers finish 14-day quarantines and update their health information daily afterward. All personnel have also received epidemic-prevention and safety training.
These safe tours are crucial to rebooting tourism since deals largely determine travelers’ decisions, Trip.com’s big data lab’s chief researcher Peng Liang says.
Some attractions have used livestreams to market themselves and offer vicarious travel experiences.
Tens of thousands of people watched the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda’s livestream in late March.
Over 150,000 netizens watched a livestream by Haichang Ocean Park on Fliggy in Shanghai in March. It helped double bookings for the park during the Qingming holiday.
Peng believes COVID-19’s impact on tourism is temporary. Travel demand remains. And the evolution could create new opportunities.