Residents of smaller cities are happier travelers: report

Chinese residents living in second or third-tier cities were more satisfied with their travels compared with those living in first-tier cities, according to a report focused on people's happiness in travel.

People from cities including Chengdu, Kunming, Jinan and Zhengzhou gave an average score of 4.6 or higher when evaluating their trips, according to the report from online travel agency Ctrip.com. The score was higher than that given by people from first-tier cities, such as Beijing and Guangzhou.

As a destination, Hangzhou in Zhejiang province was awarded a score of 4.82, meaning it topped the list of the most popular travel spots, followed by Jiuzhaigou, Mount Emei and Sanya in Hainan province, the report said.

However, the Palace Museum in Beijing received the highest score as the most popular scenic spot in China. The top 10 list also included Mount Tai and the Old Summer Palace.

When it came to overseas trips, people gave their highest scores to European destinations. Hungary, with a score of 4.83, was the favorite of Chinese travelers.

The average happiness index regarding travel last year was 93.6, higher than the score in 2015, which was 91.4, the report said.

How happy a traveler was with a trip did not necessarily relate to how much money they spent, the report found. The quality of the travel service, including accommodation, transport and tour guides, the travel environment and the travelers' expectations were all factors affecting overall satisfaction with a trip, the report said.

The report tracked more than 1 million group-tour orders on Ctrip.com. About 50 percent of users provided an evaluation for the trips, among which more than 60 percent used Ctrip's app to send comments and 20 percent preferred to submit reviews while traveling.