Passion for cultural tours set to boost holiday travel

Lion dances in Guangdong province, temple fairs in Beijing and hairpin flowers in Fujian province are proving once again to be popular draws for the upcoming Spring Festival holiday, hot on the heels of the traditional Chinese festival's addition last month to UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list.

Spring Festival marks the beginning of the new year in China and falls on the first day of the first month of the Chinese calendar, which is Jan 29 this year. People will enjoy an eight-day break, from Jan 28 to Feb 4.

The Spring Festival travel rush began on Tuesday, with train tickets to some popular destinations snapped up in seconds. The travel portal Qunar said that Jan 25 — three days before the Chinese New Year's eve — will be the busiest day for transportation, and tickets for bullet trains are selling better, and faster, than flight tickets.

"Many busy bullet train lines have seen the tickets sold out, for example the line from Beijing to Harbin, one of the most popular snow tourism destinations in Northeast China's Heilongjiang province," Qunar said. "Tickets for bullet trains bound for places including Chongqing and Chengdu in southwestern China and Beijing are also hot sellers."

A recent report by travel agency Tuniu and the China Association of Travel Services said that destinations that offer folk shows or events featuring traditional Chinese culture and crafts remain popular among travelers.

"My family used to spend the Spring Festival break in Sanya in South China's Hainan province for the tropical climate and views, or stay overseas for the weeklong holiday," said Wang Yingqing, 37, who is from Beijing.

"However, for the upcoming holiday, we plan to travel to some domestic places like Nanjing inJiangsu province and Huangshan in Anhui province to experience the traditional cultural vibes."

She recalled visiting temple fairs with her parents during her childhood. "I have some impressions of the bustling vibes. Spring Festival is one of the most important festivals to Chinese people, and it's necessary to let my daughter feel the cultural vibes, which will help her to know the real China and feel pride in the profound Chinese culture."

Qi Chunguang, vice-president of Tuniu, said that the addition of Spring Festival to UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity has greatly raised people's awareness of and passion for traditional Chinese culture, which will help turn cities with long-standing history and rich culture into popular tourism destinations this Spring Festival holiday.

Trip.com Group said that bookings to Huangshan, which is famous for mountain views and folk performances such as lantern shows, as well as Datong in North China's Shanxi province and Jingdezhen in East China's Jiangxi province, have all increased fourfold on the platform compared with last year.

In addition to cultural tours, travel products related to snow and ice are proving popular.

Trip.com said that Harbin remains a top-tier snow destination for the Spring Festival holiday. It also said that some niche northern cities have seen increased bookings, and speculated that recent solar activity in the area has raised the possibility of visitors experiencing aurora lights at these places because of the latitude.

According to Trip.com, some northern and border cities are proving to be popular, including Xiliinhot in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, which saw travel bookings at the platform surge 197 percent year-on-year; Altay in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, whose bookings rose 67 percent; and Mohe in Heilongjiang, with a 17 percent increase.