A lawn at a scenic spot in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, is adorned with holiday camps during the week-long National Day holiday that ends Friday. LONG WEI/FOR CHINA DAILY
As pandemic measures persist, vacationing locally remains a top choice for vacations
“Tailored trips”, “holidays at home” and “cultural tours” have become the buzzwords describing the national tourism market during the recent National Day holiday, which ran from October 1 to Friday.
On an online platform for travel customization, a user can book a personalized itinerary with the click of a button after providing information such as departure location, destination, travel dates and the number of travelers, according to the Xinhua news agency.
“The travel customization specialist who received my order drew up a travel plan for me according to my specifications in terms of food, accommodation, transportation and recreational activities,” a tourist from the eastern city of Qingdao told Xinhua. “We were assigned a dedicated driver and guide, and any details could be changed at my request.”
Dai Xuefeng, director of the tourism and leisure division of the National Academy of Economic Strategy of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told Xinhua: “Tailored vacations are an inevitable result of the development of the tourism industry and economic growth. “.
Local holidays remain a top option as COVID-19 precautions continue. In the week leading up to the holidays, on-demand service platform Meituan saw a 440 percent increase in searches for “local tours” and “suburban attractions” week over week.
Suburban attractions in Beijing, such as the Universal Beijing Resort and Beijing Wtown, are among the popular choices for local residents, Xinhua reported.
In Hubei province in central China, rural excursions, fruit and vegetable picking experiences, and camping trips emerged as the best options. They were expected to absorb more than 60 percent of the province’s tourist spending during the holiday week, according to Xinhua.
Zhou Qiao, a resident of Hubei’s Yichang City who vacationed in the local Bailihuang Scenic Area during the holidays, told Xinhua, “We booked tents in advance and brought our family here to experience the wonder of seeing sunrise in the morning and counting the stars at night. My children loved the experience.”
The wide range of cultural events and destinations in the cities attracted a large number of urban residents during the holiday week.
The Sanfang Qixiang Historic Architectural Complex, which literally means “three lanes and seven alleys,” in Fuzhou, east China’s Fujian province, entertained tourists with intangible cultural heritage-related talent shows and performances by the Yueju Opera, among others.
In Shanghai, many museums launched exhibitions, cultural activities and night tours to add a touch of culture to the Christmas fun, China Central Television said.
Li Xinjian, a professor at the Faculty of Tourism Sciences at Beijing International Studies University, told Xinhua that the integration of culture and tourism highlights cultural experiences in tourist travel, and customized tours offer in-depth cultural experiences that large group tours cannot. provide.