This year’s Golden Week in China, which runs from October 1 to 8, is expected to see an unprecedented outbound travel boom. The national holiday, longer than any other year thanks to its coincidence with the Mid-Autumn Festival, has led millions of Chinese to book travel packages and accommodations in advance.
According to data from travel company U-tour, as of early September, the number of Chinese planning to travel during the holiday had increased by 130% compared to last year. At the same time, Chinese travelers have made reservations at more than 2,800 hotels internationally, with top destinations being Japan, Thailand, South Korea, Malaysia and Vietnam, according to the Qunar platform. Egypt, Uzbekistan, Cambodia and Sweden also recorded impressive increases in bookings.
Visas and facilitations
New visa facilitations are playing a decisive role in the increase in demand. Countries such as Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand have established reciprocal visa-free regimes with China, while South Korea and Russia allow visa-free entry for organized groups.
Trip.com Group, China’s largest online travel agent, reports that destinations in Southeast Asia remain particularly popular, as well as countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative, with growing interest in Africa. Indicatively, bookings to Kenya and Tanzania have increased by 130%.
China welcomes foreign visitors
Meanwhile, China is also expecting a significant increase in inbound tourism for Golden Week. Popular cities for foreign travelers include Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Chengdu and Shenzhen. The countries with the largest increase in visitors to China are Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Spain, Hungary and Saudi Arabia.
