This past May Day Golden Week was called a holiday of "people following the crowd". Train tickets can't be grabbed, hotels are so expensive, traffic jams are so you just want to shout... A reporter from Beijing Youth Daily found that in order to save worry and effort, some young people chose to join the elderly tour group.

"Preempting the elderly", which has quietly emerged among young people recently, has become a new travel trend: traveling with elderly people who are the same age as their parents has given them a lot of new gains.

Unexpected surprise

Signing up for the elderly group did not expect to become a "group pet"

In order to save worry and effort on May Day, 30-year-old Zhu Qi signed up for an elderly group, but received an unexpected surprise.

Zhu Qi participated in the tour group of more than 50 people, except for her, the others were basically her father's age.

On the way to the attractions, Zhu Qi experienced the difference of the elderly group. Compared to the quiet of traveling with their peers, the old people laugh and laugh. Some old people will take the initiative to talk to Zhu Qi, talk about yesterday's "News Network", talk about what is on sale in the supermarket, and discuss the bargaining experience in the market... Talking to the old people about this, Zhu Qi realized that there are many things worth paying attention to in life.

This tour group reported by Zhu Qi does not include three meals a day, and meals can only be solved by themselves, because he is the youngest "child" in the group, and Zhu Qi naturally became a "group pet". "Many uncles and aunts are very enthusiastic, afraid that I will not have enough to eat, all kinds of feeding, in addition to dry food, there are also all kinds of small snacks." Zhu Qi said.

The biggest feature of this year's May Day holiday tourism is that "people follow the crowd", and the attractions that Zhu Qi goes to are the same. However, she is very glad that she signed up for the elderly group, because the pace of travel of the elderly is relatively slow and the time is not very hurried, so Zhu Qi experienced a different feeling than the previous "assembly line" style viewing, and she can pay more comfortable attention to the scenery along the way.

It rained lightly on the first day of the tour and the climbing steps were slippery. Zhu Qi originally planned to walk through the top of the mountain by herself, but considering the weather and the physical condition of her uncles and aunts, Zhu Qi chose to climb the mountain with them, and during the climbing process, her uncles and aunts would always tell Zhu Qi to be careful under her feet, and Zhu Qi would also help them carry bags and take pictures.

What makes Zhu Qi feel relaxed is that the uncles and aunts are really trouble-free during the journey.

Liu Xinyu, who had just landed for graduate school, signed up for an elderly group to travel to Beijing in order to get cheap.

During the journey, Xin Yu could feel the yearning of her uncles and aunts for Beijing, and these people born in the fifties and sixties of the last century had a special feeling for Beijing. She also heard a lot about Beijing from her uncles and aunts.

What impressed Xin Yu was that because the Chairman Mao Memorial Hall needed to be booked in advance, and there was a limit on the number of visitors at each time period, it was not easy to make a group reservation. The uncles and aunts repeatedly asked the tour guide if they could go in and visit, and when they heard that the tour guide said that they could not make an appointment, Xin Yu could see the expression of extreme regret and loss on the faces of the old people. A grandfather stood in front of the Chairman Mao Memorial Hall and looked at it for more than 10 minutes.

"This lifestyle of the elderly is what I aspire to and envy, and when I get to the day, I will live like this." Zhu Qi feels that the experience of participating in the elderly group this time is very good, and she will choose the elderly group to travel when she has the opportunity in the future. At first, Xin Yu, who signed up because the price of the elderly group was nearly twice as cheap as the pure play group, even rejoiced that he joined the "elderly group" after traveling to Beijing with the elderly group.

Unexpected discovery

Older travelers are "crazier" than you think

Although on many online social media, "preempting the elderly group" has become a hot search term, most young people join the elderly tour group for the first time because they "entered by mistake".

Zhang Xue, who is studying for graduate school this year, once applied for a tour group to travel to Jiuzhaigou during the summer vacation last year, but "strayed into the elderly group".

When she realized that she had entered the elderly group, Zhang Xue had already boarded the tourist bus. She was looking for a vacant seat in the car, and found that the rows of elderly people with gray hair were sitting in the car, and the doubts and apprehension in her heart instantly struck: "Where am I?" ”

In the last row of the bus, Zhang Xue and her companions found a side-by-side seat, and on the way, she asked her uncles and aunts in the front row to know that this group is the elderly group, not only the elderly on this bus, but also the elderly on the bus behind.

Zhang Xue, who likes to travel, has been to Qinghai, Wuhan, Sichuan, are all independent travel, this time with the group trip she is accompanied by her girlfriends, girlfriends to do a tourism route experience project, Zhang Xue heard that she can go to the summer resort Jiuzhaigou, so she happily came to accompany. And Zhang Xue's girlfriend didn't know in advance that she was participating in an elderly group.

Thinking of traveling with so many elderly people, Zhang Xue had a feeling of "something bad at all" at first, and her biggest worry was that "it won't be fun".

Chen Shuai, who traveled to Thailand for the fourth time, also thought so. When he walked into the senior group, his first impression was that this exotic tourism in Thailand was not suitable for the elderly.

Chen Shuai went to Thailand this time because he wanted to accompany a friend, but he was worried that he would not be a "good tour guide", so he chose to sign up for the group. When he gathered the results, he found that more than half of the more than 20 people in this tour group were elderly.

At first, the trip was similar to what Chen Shuai thought, the old man's routine was different from that of the young man, and it was more regular. Several young people in the group go to massage, drink and eat barbecue after the trip every day, while the old people go to bed early.

The ingredients of Thai food are mainly seafood, fruits, vegetables, the taste is sour and spicy, many young people are not used to eating, let alone the elderly, many elderly people can not eat much when eating group meals, but they will not go out to buy smooth things to eat like young people, but will finish the meal.

However, as the journey deepened, Chen Shuai found that the old people only had some gaps with young people in their living habits, but in the matter of "playing", some old people could even play better than young people.

When they get to the beach, the old people will also go to the sea to play in the water, and some old people are still crazy to play. At that time, the group could sign up for the umbrella project around the island at their own expense of 580 yuan, and many elderly people actually signed up without thinking about it. There was an old grandmother who enthusiastically signed up to play with young people, although she gave up in the end because of nervousness, but this made Chen Shuai feel that the old people were more like cute "children".

Zhang Xue also found that for playing this matter, the old people seemed to integrate faster than the young people. When her tour group arrived in Tibet, the tour guide arranged an interaction with the local Tibetans, but the elderly integrated faster than the young. "At that time, a Tibetan guy was singing, and the atmosphere of the whole room suddenly became lively, and the uncles and aunts clapped their hands together in a circle, circled with the rhythm of the music, danced to the rhythm, and became more and more excited." Zhang Xue said.

When Tibetan guys perform the "Hada" cultural performance, uncles and aunts will happily pose and rush to take pictures in groups of three or five, so happy that they enter a state of "self-forgetfulness". Zhang Xue said that at that moment, she felt their love for life from the smiles of her uncles and aunts, and she was even moved to tears because of the cuteness of her uncles and aunts.

predictable

Be friendly to each other, but there is a sense of boundaries in your interactions

Another problem that young people who have "strayed into the elderly group" have worried about is that young people generally think that the elderly have a poor sense of communication boundaries, and some elderly people will constantly pull you to ask questions, inquire about your work and family status, marriage and childbirth. However, this fear is mostly superfluous.

Ziyi, a freshman at East China Normal University, said that she also "strayed into the elderly group", but the elderly group that went to Putuo Mountain this time was generally very relaxed.

Some elderly people will talk to her about polite words, and if there are some topics that she is not willing to talk about, the old people will not force them to ask. "Because everyone doesn't know each other, they are still very friendly to each other, and there must be a sense of boundaries." Ziyi said. She feels that the old people in the elderly group she belongs to are generally educated, and the legendary "not very good living habits" do not appear in this elderly group.

"They don't like to mingle with strangers, they don't communicate much, and they don't feel that because I'm young, they care about me. Although they are generally harmonious and gentle, they also have a certain sense of boundaries. Ziyi said.

Another issue that is being feared in the senior group is the "shopping session". But for young people who have participated in the senior group, their shopping experience depends on the nature and composition of the group they attend.

The old people of the Jiuzhaigou tour group that Zhang Xue participated in were more rational in shopping. In the silverware and jade section, the old people buy very little, but in the medicinal herb store, they will buy some maintenance products that they may need. And the tour group that Xin Yu participated, because the price itself is extremely cheap, so the experience of the shopping link is not very good, the tour guide is crazy "brainwashed" for the elderly, and many old people buy a lot of worthless things.

harvest

The elderly group finds the feeling of "need" and "being needed"

On online social platforms, many articles writing about "preempting the elderly group" will mention that "the elderly group cures the social fear of young people". Young people find that in the older group, they communicate significantly more with other members (i.e., the elderly) than their peers. Some psychological experts believe that the cure of social fear comes from the need and need in interpersonal relationships.

Ziyi, who travels in Putuo Mountain, said that when eating, the old people will often ask her if she is full, and an old grandfather who eats at the same table with Ziyi looks at the relatively few dishes on the table, afraid that everyone will not have enough to eat, and will buy a sauerkraut fish out of his own pocket for everyone to eat together, and there is also an old grandmother in the group who buys oranges to share with everyone.

When Zhang Xue accompanied her girlfriend to Jiuzhaigou, her girlfriend also brought her younger brother who was in elementary school, and as soon as the little boy got on the bus, he became a "treasure" for his uncles and aunts on the bus. Zhang Xue could clearly feel that seeing such a young boy, the old people were unconsciously brought into the role of "grandparents", and they spoiled him as "their own grandson" throughout the process.

They will share the delicious food they bring with their children. When the younger brother has a tantrum because he didn't eat the dish he wanted to eat, the grandfather at the same table will not be able to eat it, and he just wants to comfort his younger brother.

Zhang Xue also found that every time she gathered during the trip, she and her girlfriends were always the last to get on the bus, which is also a community meeting for many netizens who have participated in the elderly group. However, the old people are very tolerant of the "lateness" of young people, although they are accustomed to going to bed early and getting up early, never being late, they can also understand the playfulness and sleepiness of young people. Some old people also said, "Before you come, let's sit and rest." ”

In fact, in the elderly group trip, the communication and mutual aid between the elderly and the young are two-way, but in the outbound tour, the elderly often need the help of young people more.

Chen Shuai found that old people are generally inferior to young people in terms of language, and they will trouble Chen Shuai and other young people to help fill out entry forms. In interacting with locals, older people are also more dependent on young people, they are reluctant to take the initiative to greet foreigners, and they will ask young people to help when they need to buy something. At this time, the elderly will rely on the young people in the group as if they were their own children.

During this outing of the elderly group, Xinyu found that the elderly in the group were dependent on the young because they could not use the Internet skillfully. Since the tour group does not care about dinner, Xinyu is checking in roast duck restaurants and shabu shops all over Beijing, but many elderly people can only eat around the hotel or make do with a bowl of instant noodles. When they heard Xin Yu say that they had eaten roast duck and shabu meat, they also took the initiative to tell Xinyu that they would call them to eat together next time.

Text/Reporter Zhang Ziyuan Intern Chen Jinku

Coordinator/Lin Yan Zhang Bin