GETTING UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL WITH NATURE
Volumes of online searches for information on trips to see flowers in China and abroad are surging, according to travel agency Ctrip
The prices for cherry blossom viewing in Japan fell 5 percent to 10 percent over last year.” Xiao Yinyuan, director of outbound travel at Ctrip
With glorious spring fast-approaching and temperatures rising throughout the nation, the country is now festooned with flowers, from cherry blossoms to magnolia and lilac — and flower lovers in China have never been so enthusiastic.
Ctrip, China’s largest online travel agency, reports that in March, the volume of searches for information about dazzling golden cole flowers, as well as for peach blossoms and cherry blossoms, has surged more than 500 percent on February’s levels.
The agency said the most popular destinations include Wuyuan, Jiangxi province, and Luoping, Yunnan province, places to enjoy the vibrantly yellow cole flowers, from the mustard family, as well as taking in exquisitely fragrant peach blossoms at West Lake, Hangzhou, and Nyingchi in Tibet autonomous region.
To pave the way for enthusiasts, a series of special flower-viewing trains have been added between Nanchang, the provincial capital of Jiangxi province, and Wuyuan, famous for its cole flowers and countryside views.
Flower viewing and rural tourism have also become a new hot spot for related commerce in Jiangxi province. By the end of last year, there were more than 100 major established sites for flower viewing, and more than 1,000 various other spots, with most flower viewers living locally or in surrounding areas, according to jxnews.com.
Thanks to more available flights and promotions launched by the scenic spots, the prices of flowerviewing trips have become cheaper than in previous years. For a number of sightseeing spots in the Tibet autonomous region introduced free admission.
“Ctrip and Tibet Airlines together introduced special flights to Nyingchi in Tibet, and it costs about 4,000 yuan ($642) to 8,000 yuan for a group tour to the area, cheaper than the usual price tag of over 10,000 yuan,” said Peng Liang, public relations director of the vacation department at Ctrip.
Meanwhile, traveling abroad to see spring blossoms has become trendy for Chinese, and admiring cherry blossoms in Japan tops the list. From late March to late April this year, it is expected that 600,000 Chinese visitors will go to Japan to see the cherry blossoms, and they will spend a total of 8 billion yuan, according to a Ctrip forecast.
Last year, the number of visitors from the Chinese mainland to Japan surged to 7.35 million, up 15.4 percent year-on-year, and their per capita spending was about 13,400 yuan. In the cherry blossom season of March and April, Japan received more than 500,000 visitors from the mainland each month, accordexample, ing to the Japan Tourism Organization.
Besides Japan, Europe and North America are also popular destinations for flower viewers, and the trips to those places in spring and summer have started to attract increasing numbers of Chinese visitors.
According to data from Ctrip, Chinese flower lovers are spreading their nets far and wide these days to satisfy their passion. Among the top draws are the tulips at Keukenhof Park in the Netherlands and the dreamy lavender in Provence in France, and the Cotswolds in the United Kingdom.
Then there are the pungent cherry blossoms in Washington DC and in Vancouver in Canada and Bonn in Germany, as well as the poppy fields of Bewdley in the UK — all of which have been drawing Chinese flower groupies in their droves, helping to push up sales at those destinations this year over the same period of last year.
With the appreciation of the yuan against the Japanese yen and US dollar, in addition to the increased available flights, the cost of experiencing the magic of flowers overseas is cheaper this year. It will set you back on average 5,700 yuan to go to Japan in March or April to see the cherry blossoms, Ctrip said.
“The prices for cherry blossom viewing in Japan fell 5 percent to 10 percent over last year,” said Xiao Yinyuan, director of outbound travel at Ctrip.
“But during the Tomb-sweeping Day break in April and the Labor Day break in May, the prices will increase around 10 percent above normal levels, and those hottest flights and hotels will be hard pressed to meet the demand,” Xiao said.
Last April, Du Ni, a 28-year-old office worker at a bank in Beijing, went to experience the magic of the cherry blossoms of Osaka and Kyoto in Japan. She said the hot spots were swamped with people, but there were far fewer travelers in some niche places.
“The cherry blossom was very beautiful and definitely worth the visit,” she said.
“I booked the hotel a long time in advance. I will go there again in the future and go to those smaller places. The views are actually more special.”