Spring Festival is unleashing China's largest seasonal travel rush. Some seven million Chinese tourists are expected to travel to over 500 tourist destinations in more than 90 countries and regions during the week-long holiday, according to estimates by Ctrip, an online provider of tourism services.

Chinese nationals made 5.5 billion domestic trips and 140 million outbound trips in 2018, an annual increase of 10.76 percent and 13.5 percent respectively, according to the China Tourism Academy.

China's outbound traveling has seen the growing demand for family trips over the past few years, Sun Jie, CEO of Ctrip, told CGTN.

Easiness of visa applications, direct flights, and friendliness of host countries are three major elements impacting the destination choice of Chinese tourists, Sun added.

Meanwhile, China has become an increasingly popular destination for foreign tourists in recent decades, Sun said, adding that inbound tourism means huge potential for the Chinese economy, attracting foreign currency and creating job opportunities.

David Moser, the associate dean at Yenching Academy of Peking University, shared his personal experience with China's reform and opening-up. China's rising middle class has served as a major source for outbound traveling with destinations ranging from southeast Asia to Europe, according to Moser.

Compared with the 1980s, high-speed rail network and social media are now making it easier for people to stay in touch with parents and friends. Therefore, while people in the past were rushing home for family reunions, traveling abroad has become a fashionable choice for them to celebrate Spring Festival, Moser said while explaining what's behind the growth of outbound trips in China.

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