Analysis: Dragon Boat Festival Travel Jumps, Spending Muted

00:00

00:00/00:00

Listen to this article 1x

Domestic travel continued to rebound during the Dragon Boat Festival holiday, but per capita spending has yet to return to pre-pandemic levels, signaling that there is still some way to go before China’s tourism industry fully picks up as the economy’s uneven recovery continues to weigh on spending.

Some 110 million trips were made on the Chinese mainland during the three-day break that ended Monday, up 6.3% year-on-year and 14.6% from the same holiday in 2019, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Total tourism spending hit 40.4 billion yuan ($5.6 billion), up 8.1% on the year and a 2.6% increase from 2019.

You've accessed an article available only to subscribers

Subscribe today for just $.99.

VIEW OPTIONS

Download our app to receive breaking news alerts and read the news on the go.

Get our weekly free Must-Read newsletter.

Share this article

Open WeChat and scan the QR code

DIGEST HUB

Digest Hub

Back

Explore the story in 30 seconds

Dragon Boat Festival travel in China saw 110 million trips and 40.4 billion yuan in spending, up from previous years and 2019.
Despite more trips, per capita spending was 12.3% below 2019, indicating cautious consumer behavior and a preference for cheaper, local trips.
Cross-border trips surged, with international travel bookings up significantly, suggesting potential recovery but highlighting economic challenges affecting domestic travel spending.

AI generated, for reference only

Who’s Who

Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd.: Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. (ANZ) is referenced in the article regarding an analyst named Xing Zhaopeng, who noted that the main highlights of spending during the Dragon Boat Festival holiday were low costs, domestic travel, and self-driving. This reflects a preference among tourists for saving costs amid the uneven economic recovery.

Tongcheng Travel Holdings Ltd.: Tongcheng Travel Holdings Ltd. is an online booking platform that reported travel trends during the Dragon Boat Festival. It indicated that nearby travel was still popular for short holidays, with many tourists opting for local tours or nearby destinations. This reflects a broader preference for shorter, more cost-effective trips among Chinese travelers.

Tuniu Corp.: Tuniu Corp. is a travel agency mentioned in the article that reports nearly half of total trips during the Dragon Boat Festival were local or nearby areas. The company indicates a high preference for short-haul tours, which constituted nearly 70% of total orders, with bookings for nearby tours increasing almost 20% year-on-year.

Trip.com: Trip.com indicates that nearby travel remained popular during the Dragon Boat Festival holiday, with short-haul tours accounting for nearly 70% of total orders. Bookings for nearby tours increased by nearly 20% year-on-year. The most popular routes included Shenzhen to Guangzhou, Shanghai to Hangzhou, and Beijing to Tianjin. Furthermore, bookings for international flights during the holiday soared 60%, and international hotel reservations by Chinese tourists rose 50% compared to the previous year.

Qunar.com Inc.: Qunar.com Inc. is an online tour operator that reported a 60% increase in bookings for international flights and a 50% rise in international hotel reservations by Chinese tourists during the Dragon Boat Festival holiday compared to the same period last year.

AI generated, for reference only

What Happened When