Tourists mob China’s most popular attractions during Labor Day

Tuesday, May 2, 2023

From the Great Wall to Shanghai’s waterfront Bund, China’s most famous destinations are being mobbed during the Labor Day holiday by throngs of domestic tourists who are travelling again in huge numbers after the country ended three years of strict pandemic controls.

More than 240 million holidaymakers are expected to travel within or outside mainland China during the five-day break that began on Saturday, a state media reported Monday, an increase of more than 20% from pre-pandemic levels in 2019.

Beijing received nearly 2 million tourists on the first day of the holiday, double the number from last year, according to the Beijing Cultural and Tourism Department.

In Shanghai, over 7 million tourists arrived in the city for the weekend, according to a Beijing Cultural and Tourism Department.

Tickets to Shanghai Disneyland have been sold out until May 3, its website showed.

Police in the city of Xi’an, home to the terracotta warriors, have warned tourists to stay away from a busy shopping street sandwiched between two popular heritage sites.

On Saturday, China Railway logged a record 19.7 million railway trips with a predicted figure on Sunday of 18 million trips.

The sheer size of the crowds travelling across the nation has baffled some citizens.

Also known as the May Day holiday, the Labor Day break is one of three major annual holidays in China.

The boom in tourism is likely to boost the Chinese economy, which is struggling to recover after the country abruptly ended its self-imposed COVID-19 isolation late last year.

Growth got off to a solid start in 2023, with the economy expanding by 4.5% in the first quarter, as consumers went on a spending spree that is continuing with the current holiday.

Mysterious cancellations

A Chinese travel booking website reported domestic bookings alone had risen by 700% compared to last year, when many restaurants and retailers were shut and travel was complicated due to the pandemic.

Accommodation was selling out this year weeks ahead of the holiday, pushing up prices, according to state media.

And there have been complaints of scalping.

Due to the high demand, according to state media, many Chinese tourists who had booked their accommodations early at low prices were later told to cancel their reservations, forcing them to have to book again at higher prices.

A wide range of excuses was given, they reported, with internet users taking to popular Chinese social media sites to complain about their plight.

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