China is expected to see a surge in travel demand during the upcoming Lunar New Year – a welcome boost for the country that recently added an extra day to the public holiday in a bid to boost demand.
Early data from Chinese travel companies shows that consumers are already searching for and booking trips well in advance of the eight-day holiday, which falls on January 28-February 4.
The country’s leading travel products provider eLong Inc. reported on Monday that airfares are expected to soar by 80 to 90 per cent from January 23-27, the week before the Lunar New Year, with prices on some popular routes rising over 100 per cent.
Tuniu, another prominent travel operator, reported on Monday that group travel bookings for the Spring Festival had risen by 40 per cent over the previous week, according to Shanghai-based media outlet The Paper.
Last month, Beijing announced it would extend the Spring Festival holiday by one day starting from 2025, creating an eight-day break. The move is designed to stimulate consumer spending, particularly among middle-class and lower-income groups who have been cutting back to save money.
Lin Huanjie, dean of the Institute for Theme Park Studies in China, said that consumers’ strong enthusiasm for travel was likely to continue throughout next year, and that the Chinese tourism sector could grow by over 5 per cent in 2025.
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