Spring Festival sees 76% jump in international travel

Both domestic and outbound travel saw robust growth during Spring Festival, according to travel agencies and tourist attractions.

Data from Shanghai Springtour International Travel Agency (Group) Co Ltd showed that the number of outbound travelers spiked 76 percent year-on-year during this year's Spring Festival holiday, which started from Jan 28. The total number of travelers booking trip products from the agency jumped 30 percent from a year earlier.

Japan ranked the top among all the overseas destinations. Apart from neighboring countries like Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore, more tourists have chosen to visit distant places like Spain, Australia, Hungary and New Zealand during the Chinese New Year, according to Springtour.

Domestically, Shanghai remained the most popular destination, with Sanya, Shantou, Chongqing, Yancheng, Suzhou, Ningbo, Hangzhou, Kunming and Xiamen also attracting significant numbers of travelers, said Springtour.

More and more people living in the Yangtze River Delta region chose to spend their Chinese New Year's Eve at hotels or resorts, with a nearly 50 percent increase in bookings for such packages. Shanghai, Suzhou, Ningbo, Hangzhou and Kunshan were among the top choices for such travel packages.

International cruise trips also won more preference this year, as the number of such travelers hiked nearly 200 percent during Chinese New Year. The number of independent cruise travelers increased about 56 percent from a year earlier.

The middle-aged demographic, particularly those aged 30-49, made up 36.85 percent of all travelers during Spring Festival, while those aged between 60-69 accounted for 15.3 percent. Family trips were a prominent trend this year.

Haichang Ocean Park located in Shanghai also reported a 50 percent increase in ticket bookings, driven by a promotion for people born in the Year of the Snake. The park's new intangible cultural heritage night show received a peak passenger flow of 40,000 tourists on Jan 30, the second day of Chinese New Year.