"Can't Travel Abroad Anyway"... Will 200 Million Chinese Spark Revenge Spending During Labor Day Holiday?

Chinese tourists flocked to Huangshan during the Qingming Festival holiday in April last year.
[Photo by Weibo] [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Seoyoung] During the Labor Day holiday period (May 1st to 5th), which is considered one of China's three major holidays along with the Spring Festival (Seollal) and National Day (October 1st), it is expected that as many as 200 million Chinese people will travel.

According to the state-run Global Times on the 25th, the major online travel platform Trip.com forecasted that about 200 million people will travel domestically within China during the Labor Day holiday period. Accordingly, the Chinese government also expects that the increase in domestic travel during the Labor Day holiday will help revitalize the domestic market.

Trip.com particularly predicted that many people will take long-distance trips. This is because the compensation psychology for not being able to travel for over a year due to the impact of COVID-19 is strongly at play, and overseas travel is still virtually impossible.

Furthermore, Trip.com explained that the number of flight reservations during the holiday period increased by 23% compared to 2019, before COVID-19. Flights to popular tourist destinations were sold out early, and most train tickets were sold out since reservations began on the 17th.

The state-run Global Times also reported that this year, especially with the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party, "red tourism," which involves visiting revolutionary sites of the Communist Party, is gaining popularity. The state-owned travel agency China Youth Travel Service (CYTS) expects that tourism revenue during this year’s Labor Day holiday will be similar to the level before COVID-19 in 2019.

Meanwhile, a Chinese economic expert said, "Consumption during the Labor Day holiday period will exceed the level of 2019." He predicted, "Despite positive growth in the Chinese economy, consumption in the cultural and tourism sectors has been suppressed due to COVID-19, so this year compensation for consumption will be necessary."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.