BEIJING, Jan. 19 -- China's domestic
travel market looks set to thrive in the coming Spring Festival holiday season
amid the global economic slowdown, latest figures from a survey and industry
players have shown.
Close to half of the respondents in an online survey
released on Saturday by market research company Nielsen said they would take up
domestic tour packages during the weeklong vacation period, which starts next
week.
"Demand for travel is not likely to extinguish amid
the economic downturn," said Zhang Qingzhu from tour agency China Comfort Travel
Ltd.
"But some holidaymakers may cut down their budgets
and opt for domestic trips over overseas ones," she said.
Domestic tours are good options during Spring
Festival for its relatively good value for money, she said.
Others in the industry said the cancellation of the
weeklong May Day holiday has also contributed to the increasing demand for
domestic tours during Spring Festival.
"Since last year, people can enjoy only two weeklong
holidays - the Spring Festival and National Day holidays. There is a need to
release the pent-up demand in the sector," said Zhang Lingjie, deputy manager of
the domestic department with the China International Travel Service head office.
Among all the domestic travel destinations, Hainan
province's Sanya, which boasts bright sunshine and beautiful coastlines, stands
out as the most popular site, with more than one-fifth of respondents in the
Nielson survey saying they would choose the southern city to spend Spring
Festival.
Yunnan province's Lijiang, known for its historical
sights, ranked as the second-most popular destination in the survey with 17
percent of online users in the survey citing it as their preferred choice.
Olympic host city Beijing came in third with 16 percent of those polled favoring
it.
Tour operators like China Comfort Travel's Zhang
Qingzhu said falling tour prices are also expected to "stimulate" the increasing
domestic tour demand.
Domestic tour prices have already dropped from those
of previous years because of sluggish business in the transport and hotel
industries, Zhang said.
Prices for 75 percent of domestic travel packages for
this year's Spring Festival holiday season have fallen by up to 20 percent from
those of previous years, the Beijing Daily has reported.
The recent decrease in fuel prices and group
discounts offered by airlines make up most of the fall in domestic tour
packages, said Tian Ling, executive manager of the domestic tour department of
tour agency China CYTS Tours Holding Co Ltd.
"Price quotes for Sanya tours, among the most popular
travel options during this Spring Festival period, is 5,000 yuan (731 U.S.
dollars) at the lowest, 1,000 yuan less than those in 2007," Tian said.
With the number of inbound tourist falling, some
travel destinations are pushing ahead with promotions to attract domestic
tourists to boost business, Tian said.
To that effect, Beijing will distribute 30,000 free
tickets to attract tourists during the holiday and at least 100 scenic spots in
the capital will offer a 20 percent to 40 percent discount on tickets, Zhang
Huiguang, head of Beijing's tourism administration, said last week.
The authorities in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, also
announced plans to distribute 400,000 sets of promotional travel vouchers, worth
40 million yuan, to neighboring provinces, the Shanghai Morning News reported on
Friday.
(Source: China Daily)
