China to see boom in tourism market as summer vacation draws near

China is expecting to see a new tourism boom as summer vacation draws near, with Generation Z, those born between 1995 and 2009, as the pillar of domestic tourism, according to data from online travel agencies.

(Photo/pixabay.com)

Statistics from China’s leading online travel agency Ctrip show that by the end of June 21, search volume for trips during summer vacation had surged by 249 percent on a month-on-month basis. The cost for travel has also risen and is likely to grow in the next month, with flight ticket prices from July to August averaging 1,150 yuan (about $177.8), up by 93.6 percent and 25 percent compared to the same period in 2020 and 2019, respectively.

The search volume for graduation trips on June 9, the day China's national college entrance exam ended, jumped by 120 percent from a day earlier on Ctrip’s app. Students born after 2000 and 2010, who prefer to travel with their peers, have emerged as the new consumption group in the tourism market, accounting for 30.1 percent of the total tourists.

Ctrip’s data reveals that over 70 percent of high school graduates will travel with their “companions,” bringing along traditional Han costumes, camera lenses, tripod heads, and garage kits . They will record their trips using photos and short video clips, which they will then share online.

The concept of a mystery vacation package, which has gained popularity among Generation Z, has also expanded to the tourism sector during the summer vacation.

Ctrip is launching the mystery package, which includes cuisine , accommodation, tickets for tourist attractions, and air tickets. Its air ticket mystery vacation package is priced at 99.8 yuan and contains hundreds of hot domestic destination options from nine popular departure cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan, Xi’an, and Lhasa . If tourists do not like the "contents" after opening the box, they can get a full refund.