Chongqing - As the May Day holiday approaches, major online travel agencies, including Trip.com, Tongcheng Travel, and Fliggy, have released their latest travel forecasts. Once again, Chengdu and Chongqing in Southwest China feature prominently among the top 10 most popular domestic destinations.
Foreign tourists take videos at Liziba Station, a popular tourist destination in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, on July 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Tang Yi)
According to Trip.com’s report, this year’s holiday travel trends are characterized by a surge in long-distance trips, a rebound in cross-border travel, and a rising preference for county-level destinations. Notably, cross-city hotel bookings now account for over 80% of all accommodations, and high-end hotels in county markets have overtaken those in major cities. Inbound travel orders have soared by 173% year-on-year.
Fliggy’s data echoes these findings. Air ticket bookings on the platform have risen by about 30% compared to last year. Popular long-haul destinations, such as Hainan, Xinjiang, Xizang, Yunnan, and Guizhou, are leading the surge, while niche travel experiences, including coastal foraging, mountain climbing, and island hopping, have seen a month-on-month increase in search interest of over 200%.
In terms of city-specific popularity, both Chongqing and Chengdu continue to rank among the top 10 domestic destinations across Trip.com, Tongcheng Travel, and Fliggy.
Tongcheng Travel’s report lists Beijing, Chengdu, Shanghai, Kunming, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Chongqing, Xi’an, Harbin, and Shenyang as this year’s top 10 domestic destinations. Similarly, Trip.com’s rankings include Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Guangzhou, Chongqing, Xi’an, Wuhan, and Qingdao.
Chongqing’s tourism momentum is powerful. According to Fliggy, car rentals and chartered tours in Chongqing during the May Day period have more than doubled year-on-year, while ticket bookings, airport, and station transfer services have increased by over 40%. Air travel to Chongqing has also risen by 30%, with major sources of tourists including Sichuan, Hubei, Guizhou, Shaanxi, and Hunan.
Meanwhile, Trip.com’s data shows that the rise of long-distance travel has boosted cities such as Taiyuan, Foshan, Ili, Guiyang, and Lingshui into the top 5 for fastest hotel booking growth. Tourism orders for Haikou and Yining have increased by more than 130% year-over-year, with Sanya growing by 54%. Other destinations, such as Jiuzhaigou, Taiyuan, and Shangri-La, have also seen over 50% increases. Travelers seeking to avoid holiday crowds may want to reconsider trips to these popular destinations.
Notably, Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Chongqing, Qingdao, Hangzhou, Kunming, and Xi’an have been listed among the top 10 destinations for inbound travel during the May Day holiday.
Outbound tourism is also heating up. Trip.com reports that international private car tours are expected to grow by nearly 25% year-on-year, with Japan-bound services projected to surge by 60%. Fliggy’s data shows that outbound travel product bookings per person are up 12% compared to last year, with air ticket, hotel, and attraction ticket bookings all experiencing substantial growth—attraction ticket bookings alone have increased by 150%.
Popular outbound destinations for the May Day holiday include Japan, Hong Kong (China), South Korea, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia, the United States, and Australia. Niche destinations such as Iceland, Hungary, Morocco, Norway, and Georgia have also seen their bookings double.
(Qiu Jinyi, a reporter from Shangyou News, contributed to this report's Chinese version.)