In a serendipitous overlap of celebrations, the National Day holiday and the Mid-Autumn Festival coincided this year, offering an extended eight-day holiday and driving a significant increase in outbound and inbound trips in China.

On average, nearly 1.48 million entry-exit trips were made per day amid the holiday, representing a 2.9-fold increase compared with the same period in 2022. The total number of cross-border trips topped 11.8 million, according to the official data released by the National Immigration Administration on Saturday.

The eight-day holiday, which ended on Friday, has boasted about 5.87 million inbound trips and nearly 5.95 million outbound ones, official data shows.

A total of 1.67 million inbound trips were logged on October 2, the fourth day of the holiday, ranking first in terms of daily tourist volume during the holiday period.

A shift in tourists' preferences

Trip.com, a Chinese online travel agency, said in a report that the outbound tourism market has witnessed remarkable growth, with bookings skyrocketing nearly 20 times compared to a year earlier.

Among the global destinations favored by Chinese travelers, Trip.com lists Thailand, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, and the United Kingdom as the top picks. Thailand, in particular, has become an even more attractive destination after the Thai government announced that Chinese tourists would be exempt from visa requirements for five months starting September 25.

"We're witnessing a notable shift in tourists' preferences toward premium services and immersive travel experiences. Travelers are delving beyond popular tourist spots, searching for more unique and authentic experiences," said Sun Jie, CEO of Trip.com Group.

Chinese online travel platform Fliggy's data highlights this evolving trend. The growth of outbound independent travel services such as local entertainment and overseas car rentals has been rapid, with the volume of overseas car rental bookings increasing nearly 9.5 times compared to last year. The overseas local entertainment services' fulfillment scale has grown by nearly nine times year-on-year.

Demand for Chinese outbound cruise tours is strong, and these services have tremendous potential, according to a senior executive of Viking Cruises, one of the world's leading cruise operators. International cruise line operators are stepping up efforts to launch more global itineraries to attract sophisticated Chinese travelers as the latter are increasingly pursuing differentiated and high-quality cruise experiences overseas.

China's Ministry of Transport announced in September the full resumption of international cruise ship transport to and from ports in the country. The largest cruise homeport in northern China, Tianjin International Cruise Home Port has received a total of 7 international cruises, with more than 11,000 entry-exit passengers.

Golden opportunity for host countries

The recovery of the tourism industry in China is now providing a significant boost to outbound tourism.

According to Fitch Ratings, an American credit rating agency, China was one of the world's largest tourism source markets before the pandemic, with a total international tourism expenditure of 254.6 billion U.S. dollars in 2019.

For many countries worldwide, Chinese tourists are an increasingly important driver of growth, and the surge in travels during the National Day holiday could translate into a much-needed economic boost for host countries, presenting golden opportunities for local tourism, hospitality, and retail sectors.

Patricia Yates, chief executive officer of VisitBritain, the official tourism website of Britain, said that China was an important inbound visitor market for her country.

"In the world's No. 2 economy, spending on holidays and inbound and outbound tourism is expected to surge, contributing to the world's tourism recovery," said Mohamed Othman, chairman of the Cultural Tourism Marketing Committee in Upper Egypt.

(With input from Xinhua)