Chinese Travelers Are Back

Beijing received 99.82 million tourists and saw a total sales revenue of 11.5 billion yuan (US$1.69 billion) during the National Day holiday, according to the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism. The numbers marked increases of 8.4% and 2.9% respectively over the holiday period last year. This is a clear signal that Chinese travelers are back as Chinese tourists now feel safe to travel in their own country.

Among the tourists in the Chinese capital, approximately 4.07 million came from other provinces, an increase of 5.4% over the holiday last year and contributing a tourism revenue of 9.1 billion yuan.

The city’s data also shows that Beijing topped the list of the country’s most popular destination during the holiday, with a tourism revenue growth above the national average. In particular, its 223 major scenic areas saw a 63.1% rise in revenue over the holiday period last year.

According to data from Chinese food delivery giant Meituan, compared with May Day holiday this year, scenic area tickets and hotel bookings from tourists outside Beijing increased by 17 percentage points and 23 percentage points, respectively. Local residents pitched in as well, spending an average of 405.2 yuan per person on cultural tourism, up 13.0% over last year’s National Day holiday.

Meituan’s data also shows that tourists gave 3.95 points out of five on average when rating scenic areas and spots in Beijing, a 0.77% increase over the holiday period last year.

Consumer spending during night hours also contributed to the bounce back of the service industry after the outbreak. According to big data studies, the number of scenic area tickets and takeout orders in Beijing during nights of the holiday period increased by 12.66% and 16.25%, respectively, compared with those of last year.

Cultural activities such as toy exhibitions, outdoor performances, and creative product fairs also attracted large amounts of people to business districts and spurred sales. For example, the famous cultural tourism complex Beijing Fun in the downtown area of the municipality saw tourists staying 30% longer in the area during the first five days of the holiday than the same period last year. A recently opened perfume gallery here had an average daily sales volume nine times higher than the days prior to the holiday.

The suburban areas remain a popular destination during the holiday. The 6,095 hotels, hostels, and homestays in the areas saw an average room occupancy of 63% during the holiday period, with some above 95%.

A total of 436 commercial performances were held in Beijing from Oct. 1 to 8, attracting 126,000 people and recording around 24.71 million yuan in the box office; a total of 1,593 public cultural activities were held across the municipality, which received 9.25 million people to participate, about 11 times that of the same period in 2019.