As a popular destination in China, Chongqing has attracted a lot of tourists. (Photo by Liu Li)

By Keqiao Cheng, EDITOR

Chongqing - As the Chinese New Year draws near, the festival atmosphere is getting stronger. Have you already packed your luggage and been ready for the desired destination in China?

On January 30, Chongqing Daily and Ctrip jointly released 2019 Chongqing Spring Festival Tourism Big Data Forecast Report. Based on the booking volume of tickets, Chongqing, ranks after Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu only. It is the fifth most popular destination in China. Meanwhile, as “place of departure”, it ranks the ninth.

Inbound tourists to Chongqing expected to grow by 20%

Where are the inbound tourists to Chongqing from?

Chongqing Daily and Ctrip released a forecast report, based on the big data about the online tourism products reservation of 300 million Ctrip users. The products of Ctrip include self-guided tour, package tour, tailored travel, etc. The report also takes the data from 7,000 Ctrip stores nationwide into consideration. Furthermore, it also covers the statistical data from Chongqing Daily Big Data Research Institute.

The report shows that over 400 million Chinese will travel during the upcoming Chinese New Year while the number for 2018 was 386 million. And about 7 million will travel abroad this year. Then, large amounts of Chinese tourists will flood to popular destinations both at home and abroad. The Chinese New Year will bring the global tourism market to a new high.

In this festival, the order volume of Ctrip Global Visa Service Center saw a year-on-year growth of about 40%. The Center can handle visas for up to 76 destinations.

For domestic travel, based on big data on orders for package and self-guided tours, the report lists the top ten destinations. They are Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Chongqing, Wuhan, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Xi’an, and Nanjing.

It also lists the top ten hot places of departure. They are Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Wuhan, Nanjing, Chongqing, and Xi’an. Chongqing is the ninth.

Per capita spending  estimated to be RMB 2,600

According to the estimation of the report, the per capita spending of Chongqing-bound tourists will reach around RMB 2,600. Most tourists will spend 4 to 6 days in Chongqing, accounting for 69% of the total. Those who will stay less than 3 days account for 21%. And tourists who will be in Chongqing for 7 to 10 days account for 10%.

During this Chinese New Year, the year-on-year growth of the total number of Chongqing-bound tourists will be over 20%. The peak of tourists coming to Chongqing will be on February 3, 4 (New Year’s Eve) and 5. And the returning peak will be from February 10 to 12.

Source: Chongqing Daily