China’s National Day holiday in 2019 was the last long public holiday of the year. Public enthusiasm for travel was fully unleashed, with tourist sites across the country seeing peak visitor numbers—especially popular attractions, which were packed to the brim with shoulder-to-shoulder crowds. According to statistics from China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism, in the first four days of the holiday, 542 million trips were made, generating 452.63 billion yuan in domestic tourism revenue.
Red tourism dominated travel routes, with parade floats and themed contingents from the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic becoming popular photo spots among travelers. Searches for “self-driving tours” saw a 35% increase in popularity.
Civil aviation passenger traffic rose 3.7%
According to data from China’s Ministry of Transport, in the first four days of the holiday up to October 4, the country’s transport systems carried approximately 345 million passengers cumulatively. Among them, road passenger transport reached 270 million, down 2%; waterway passenger transport in major regions totaled about 8.8847 million, up 4.15%; on October 4, railways nationwide carried around 13.32 million passengers, while from October 1 to 3, railways carried 45.423 million passengers, up 5.3%; the civil aviation sector operated 65,128 flights, carrying 7.15 million passengers, up 3.7%.
Just how crowded were the tourist sites? Some visitors exclaimed they couldn’t see the springs at Baotu Spring, the lake at West Lake, or the shore at the Bund. Others said they were “squeezed to the point of plasmolysis” or that “mobile signals were jammed.” By 16:00 on October 4, parks and scenic spots in the West Lake Scenic Area had received 2.3412 million visitors, with Hangzhou as a whole hosting 12.3087 million visitors.
Artsy itineraries proved popular
This year marked the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, making red tourism a highlight of the holiday travel market. The Ministry of Culture and Tourism noted that red tourism hotspots such as Beijing, Jinggangshan, Zunyi, Nanchang, Yan’an, Jiaxing, and Guangzhou were favored by travelers. Key red tourism destinations including the site of the First National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the Red Boat on South Lake, Yangjialing, Xibaipo, the former site of the Gutian Conference, and the Xiangshan Revolutionary Memorial Site all saw peak visitor numbers.
Self-driving tours, family trips, customized travel, nighttime tours, and autumn foliage tours emerged as new bright spots in the tourism market. The Ministry of Culture and Tourism stated that during the holiday, searches for “self-driving tours” saw a 35% rise in popularity, with self-drive routes in Gansu, Qinghai, Xinjiang, Guizhou, and southern Anhui & western Sichuan climbing the trending lists. In addition to night market dining, more tourists and locals visited concert halls, theaters, cinemas, libraries, and museums.