Travel authorities issue 100m yuan in coupons to boost cultural, tourism spending

Tourists line up to take photos at the foot of Mount Qomolangma in southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, May 24, 2024. The Mount Qomolangma National Park has entered peak tourism season. From Jan. 1 to May 20 this year, the Mount Qomolangma scenic spot has received about 136,000 tourists. (Photo: Xinhua)

As the Dragon Boat Festival draws closer, the Chinese tourism market is seeing a booming trend, with searches for holiday travel surging on domestic tourism platform Mafengwo amid the country's stepped-up efforts in bolstering cultural tourism.

The online tourism agency reported a 166 percent week-on-week surge in searches ahead of the Dragon Boat Festival, also known as the Duanwu Festival. The three-day holidays will last from June 8 to 10.

Specifically, searches for the Altay region in the northern part of Xinjiang increased by 233 percent over the past week on the platform, which was boosted by the viral TV series To the Wonder.

Multiple localities in China have launched dedicated campaigns to attract tourists by offering more high-quality tourism products, as the Dragon Boat Festival and summer travel peak approach.

As a part of the campaign, a total of 100 million yuan ($14.82 million) worth of coupons will be issued to cover preferential measures such as reducing prices and offering free admission at tourist attractions, and discounts and free activities for tourism businesses, while more than 6,300 targeted measures will be implemented, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

For instance, Beijing has launched cultural and tourism packages for its citizens. South China's Guangdong Province will distribute 2 million yuan worth of consumption vouchers, specifically for accommodation expenses at star-rated hotels and participating homestays, domestic media outlets reported.

Such measures will help release the multiplier effect of the tourism industry chain and create momentum for the high-quality development of the Chinese economy, Zhang Yi, CEO of iiMedia Research Institute, told the Global Times on Monday.

The surge in domestic tourist trips so far this year has underscored consumption-driven economic growth, and the development momentum of tourism will further ensure China's steady economic recovery and lay the foundation for further growth throughout the year, analysts said.

The consumption of services related to culture and tourism has become a pivotal pillar for stabilizing the Chinese economy. Analysts said that promotional events organized by China's travel authorities are set to activate the domestic tourism market ahead of the summer consumption peak and further sustain the economic driving force for the second quarter.

The tourism industry has a significant effect on driving the development of relevant sectors such as transportation, commerce, catering and culture, and it can also promote the development of emerging services industries such as international finance, information consulting and cultural creativity, Jiang Yiyi, a vice president of the School of Leisure Sports and Tourism at Beijing Sport University, told the Global Times on Monday.

Based on the recovery of tourism services and the tourism economy in 2023, the China Tourism Academy estimates that domestic tourism will see remarkable growth both in visitor numbers and revenue in 2024.

Domestic trips this year are likely to exceed 6 billion and tourism-related revenue will exceed 6 trillion yuan, chinanews.com reported.