Cross- provincial travels for May Day dulled by COVID

▶ Short- distance trips, spending coupons to lift morale

As the third May Day holidays shadowed by the COVID- 19 epidemic, cross- regional travel in China is expected to record a significant drop due to the country’s largest Omicronfueled epidemic wave that infected over 550,000 people nationwide inside a month. Multiple provinces have issued notices suggesting residents to not travel between provinces, making short- distance trips to outer fringes of major cities or neighboring localities a popular choice for many travel enthusiasts.

While the domestic passenger volume is expected to plunge, tours within provinces, a delightful alternative for long- distance travels, is seeing a significant surge. Various locations have also rolled out consumption coupons that can be used offline and online to stimulate people’s spending.

At least nine provincial- level regions in China released notices in recent days addressing epidemic prevention for the May Day holidays, advising residents to not leave the region unless necessary. Individuals from medium- and high- risk regions are restricted from cross- regional travel.

As a result, China’s passenger volume is expected to fall by 62 percent on a yearly basis during the upcoming May Day holidays, an official from Ministry of Transport said on Thursday, as the recent outbreaks have impacted public appetite for long- distance travel.

With long- distance trips off the table for many, short- distance outings have become a popular choice. As shown in a report by Trip, the most popular online travel booking platform in China, 52 percent of the orders booked on the platform for the May Day travels are tours within travelers’ home province.

However, nationwide consumer spending is also expected to retain a sluggish state during this year’s May

Day holidays, industrial insiders and data showed.

A report sent by qunar. com to the Global Times suggested that the booking price of hotels in cities like Ji’nan, Chengdu and Chongqing, popular travel destinations in China, hit the lowest point in nearly five years during May Day holiday period.

In a bid to stimulate spending and public sentiment in spite of restrictions, a number of cities have rolled out consumption coupons. Beijing had planned to issue more than 300 million yuan ($ 45.4 million) of consumption coupons to shopper from April to September.

Ningbo in East China’s Zhejiang Province will issue more than 300 million yuan worth of consumption coupons between Thursday and May 31, the strongest and farthest reaching coupon issuance campaign in the city’s history, with at least 100,000 businesses including shopping malls, supermarkets and restaurants joining the campaign.