Overseas tourism for holidays flying high

With sustained and stable positive signals continuing for China's outbound tourism market, Tansey said Viking Cruises is full of confidence in the growth prospect of China's tourism market.

The company announced in mid-August the return of its voyage on the Danube River that crosses Central and Eastern European countries such as Austria, the Czech Republic and Hungary. The itinerary will start in 2024 to cater to the growing demand of Chinese travelers.

In the meantime, Qunar, a Beijing-based online travel agency, found that Chinese tourists' booking volumes for traveling abroad have resumed to more than 50 percent of the pre-pandemic level. Some hot destinations include Bangkok, Thailand; Seoul, South Korea; Tokyo and Osaka, Japan; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; and Singapore.

The availability of international flights has a certain impact on the popularity and prices of traveling abroad. This summer, the number of flights from China to Southeast Asian countries, South Korea and Japan has been abundant, Qunar said.

"Some carriers have launched special prices for flights to Southeast Asian countries, and prices of flights this summer have been lower than the same period of 2019, before the pandemic," said Xiao Peng, a researcher at the big data research institute of Qunar.

In late August, with the approaching new semester, the number of people who took trips dropped compared with earlier this summer and the prices of flights also declined. Those who still want to travel should take the opportunity to set out, Qunar said.

For the upcoming Golden Week holiday, driven by strong travel demand, the average price of an international flight is expected to exceed the prices over the summer.

For international flights that depart on Sept 29, the average price of a one-way flight stands at 6,696 yuan ($916), excluding tax — 72 percent higher than the average price in summer. Starting from Sept 25, international flight fares will increase significantly, according to Tongcheng Travel, a Suzhou, Jiangsu province-based online travel agency.

"The recovery of the outbound tourism market following COVID-19 is expected to embrace its first milestone during this year's National Day holiday," said Cheng Chaogong, a senior researcher with the research institute of Tongcheng Travel.

"Short-distance destinations such as South Korea are likely to witness strong travel demand. Long-distance trips to Europe and the US will also see good performances and drive local demand for accommodations," Cheng said.

He added that the domestic long-distance travel market is expected to continue its heat and some popular destinations are set to welcome higher passenger traffic compared with the same period before the pandemic.