Tian Peng, reporter of this newspaper
Recently, topics such as "Is Thailand really too expensive to go" and "Thailand travel" have appeared on the Weibo hot search list. In fact, with the recent expansion of the list of destinations for outbound group travel in China, coupled with the approaching "May Day" holiday, outbound tourism has become more and more popular.
After visiting a number of Beijing travel agencies, the reporter of "Securities Daily" found that all travel agencies have launched a number of routes around outbound travel, and the destinations are not only the more popular Southeast Asian countries recently, but also Switzerland, Italy and other European countries. As of press time, there are not many places left for outbound tours with tour groups during the "May Day" period of travel agencies, and the scheduled scheduled group trips from popular countries have reached June. In addition, the reporter learned from the communication with consumers that due to the expected small peak of domestic travel during the "May Day" period, "off-peak travel" has become one of the important reasons why tourists choose outbound travel.
Outbound group travel "hard to find"
Although there is still some time before the May Day holiday, the tide of travel bookings has arrived early.
"The New Zealand tour on April 4 is full, and there are only 17 places left for the next tour on May 5, if you are sure to travel, please pay the deposit as soon as possible." On March 11, the reporter of "Securities Daily" received the above reply when consulting a domestic outbound tourism service provider as a tourist, and at the same time, the travel agency repeatedly stressed that the remaining location will change at any time.
Subsequently, the reporter learned from the offline store in Fengtai District, Beijing, another travel service provider, that the latest tour group sent to New Zealand has been scheduled until April 4, and the departure place is Shanghai, and tourists in Beijing need to go to Shanghai at their own expense to depart with the group. At the same time, the person in charge of the relevant business of the store said, "The 29-person group is currently full, but there are still 20 people who have not paid the deposit, if they can pay the deposit now, they have the opportunity to negotiate vacant seats." ”
"This year's May Day domestic travel number may usher in a small peak, so outbound travel has become a good choice for 'off-peak travel', and the relevant booking channels have been opened as early as early March." Introduction of the person in charge of the relevant business of the above store. At the same time, the reporter learned from communicating with consumers who consulted outbound travel on the spot that the prices and services of several large travel agencies on the market are not much different, and everyone chooses outbound travel, on the one hand, because there is no opportunity to leave the country for a long time, and on the other hand, it is to stagger the situation that domestic attractions are full during the "May Day" period.
In the selection of outbound destinations, the interviewed merchants all gave priority to Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand, Singapore, and Malaysia. In addition, European routes such as Switzerland, Italy, and France have also been highly recommended by merchants.
When talking about the selection criteria for outbound travel destinations, the aforementioned tourism service provider told reporters, "At present, the promotion routes are mainly visa-free and visa-on-arrival countries, if visa processing is involved, it cannot be guaranteed to be issued smoothly before May Day, and the exit visa processing time needs to be reserved for 1 to 2 months." ”
The reason why the European route was highlighted may be related to the pilot resumption of outbound tourism-related business in the second batch of 40 countries. Cheng Chaogong, chief researcher of Tongcheng Research Institute, said that since the announcement of the second batch of 40 outbound travel destinations, the number of visa appointments and outbound travel consultation bookings around May Day has maintained rapid growth. In terms of user structure, the current core customer group of outbound tourism is mainly people under the age of 45.
The demand for domestic travel homestays has increased significantly
While the outbound tourism market is booming, the domestic tourism market has also ushered in a "small peak", and the number of travel-related orders during the May Day period has increased significantly.
The relevant person in charge of Wooden Bird Homestay told the reporter of "Securities Daily" that the demand for homestay vacation this year has increased significantly. As of March 3, the platform's "May Day" holiday reservation amount has exceeded 20.43% of the overall turnover during last year's "May Day" period. With the official arrival of the small long holiday, orders are expected to continue to grow.
In addition, according to the person in charge of the above-mentioned platform, Qingdao, Nanjing, Chongqing, Chengdu, Changsha, Weihai, Beijing, Xiamen, Shanghai, Guangzhou and other cities have hot bookings. In terms of length of stay, the current average length of stay is about 3 days, higher than the average stay of 1.74 days during May Day last year.
With the increase in demand, the cost of travel has also increased to varying degrees. According to the person in charge of the relevant business of an offline store in Fengtai District, Beijing, "At present, the price of the 'Changsha-Guizhou-Xisha Islands' tour is about 5000,7000 yuan / person, but part of the scheduling fee will be added during the 'May Day' period, and the estimated price is about <>,<> yuan / person." ”
An Guangyong, an expert from the Credit Management Committee of the All-Union Mergers and Acquisitions Association, told the Securities Daily reporter that the recovery of the tourism market and the increase in demand will drive the growth of demand for related derivative consumer goods and services, such as air tickets, hotels, catering, attraction tickets, tourist souvenirs, etc. At the same time, the hot tourism market during the "May Day" period will also significantly stimulate consumption, which can stimulate the economic development of relevant regions to a certain extent and bring more employment opportunities to the local area.
"The May Day holiday is an important node for the tourism industry in the first half of the year, and it is also an important 'window' for the industry to observe the sustainability of the tourism recovery." Cheng Chaogong said in an interview with the "Securities Daily" reporter that for enterprises mainly engaged in outbound tourism business, this year's "May Day" holiday is particularly important, because it is the first long holiday after the resumption of related business operations. On the one hand, the supply chain being repaired by relevant enterprises will be tested by strong demand during the long holiday for the first time, on the other hand, the income obtained during the long holiday will play a certain role in "replenishing blood", which is conducive to enhancing the confidence and enthusiasm of enterprises to cope with the next summer market. (Securities Daily)