Travel agencies banking on tickets to ride

The sector has been given the green light to resume domestic tours. Wang Keju reports.

Wearing a long, steel-gray gown and holding a string of Buddha beads, Dai Shuai welcomed his record-breaking 6,000-strong "tourist group" to Mount Putuo－one of China's four sacred Buddhist mountains.

Prior to the novel coronavirus outbreak, the 30-year-old guide would think himself lucky if some 60 people signed up for each sightseeing tour.

This time, though, all the "visitors" to this serene land of Buddhism, located on a small island just off the coast of Zhejiang province, came via their smartphones.

The "tour" was held in mid-March, as the grip of the virus began to ease nationwide.

"Hello, everyone: Welcome to this virtual walk around this gorgeous mountain and our intriguing temple tour of historical and religious relics. Hiking through this sacred land, you will have an extraordinary experience of a spiritual sanctuary," Dai said, greeting the audience from behind a face mask.

He then toiled up the steep and narrow way, sometimes zooming in to a freeze frame to give the viewers a clear look at the meadows shaded with aspen and willow trees that bordered a stream, or elaborated on the unique culture illustrated by sculptures, stone carvings and architecture.

During the nearly two-hour online tour, some audience members tipped him with virtual gifts as a mark of appreciation for his introduction. It was the only source of income Dai had in the first quarter of the year after the outbreak pushed the pause button on the entire offline tourism industry.

"Though the tips of 2,000 yuan ($289) only amounted to one-fifth of my regular monthly salary, at least the money offset my basic expenses," he said, adding that livestreaming offered a glimmer of hope amid the gloomy tourism market.