Summer "tourism economy" showcases new vitality in tourism | industry | economy
This summer, not only did the movie "Three Thousand Miles in Chang'an" say "a light boat has crossed thousands of mountains", but also the place where Li Bai wrote this "Early Departure from the White Emperor City" - Fengjie, which attracted many people to go boating on the Yangtze River. It seems that the fire is not only in Fengjie, but also in many popular tourist attractions, and many niche attractions are crowded with people.
As the first summer vacation after the epidemic, how is the recovery of the national tourism market? What are the new characteristics of summer tourism economy? The "Strong Observation" section of People's Daily Online conducted an interview.
The recovery of summer tourism market is accelerating
According to the prediction of the China Tourism Research Institute, the number of domestic tourists is expected to reach 1.331 billion from July to August, when the concentration of holidays for primary, secondary, and tertiary students is the highest, accounting for 20.18% of the total number of domestic tourists in the year.
In recent days, civil aviation and railway transportation have been full of vitality, with double-digit growth in traffic volume. The "Strong Observation" column found that since the summer vacation, the number of flights and passengers at the Capital Airport has repeatedly reached new highs. On August 6th alone, the daily passenger throughput exceeded 200000, setting a new record for passenger flow at Capital Airport since February 2020. According to data released by China National Railway Group, from July 1st to August 15th, the country's railway summer transportation has sent a total of 614 million passengers, setting a new historical high. In terms of outbound tourism, the "Big Data Report on Outbound Tourism in the First Half of 2023" released by the China Tourism Research Institute in July pointed out that with the increase of international flights, the demand for outbound tourism such as business travel, visiting relatives and friends, graduation travel, and summer study tours continues to be released, and outbound tourism is facing a good trend of orderly recovery.
On August 5th, children visited the Nanshan Cultural Tourism Area in Sanya City, Hainan Province. Shen Jizhong
"During the summer vacation, cultural activities such as music festivals, concerts, and 'village supermarkets' in various regions have ignited the popularity of the tourism market. Cultural activities such as parents taking their children or schools organizing students to visit museums, explore nature, and experience intangible cultural heritage are highly sought after. Sports tourism such as surfing, paddling, diving, cycling, and crossing the wilderness are popular among young tourists." Ma Yiliang, the President of the China Tourism Research Institute, said that the recovery of the summer tourism market is accelerating, which is expected to drive up the number of tourists and income in the second half of the year.
The boundary of summer tourism industry continues to extend
With the arrival of the peak summer tourism season, the popularity of the tourism market has reached a new high. Currently, tourist demand is changing, travel methods are upgrading, and consumption concepts are also being updated simultaneously.
The "Strong Observation" column notes that various regions are actively taking measures to explore cultural and tourism characteristic resources, promote the integration and development of culture and tourism, cultivate new business models, and accelerate the recovery of the consumer market. At the same time, according to a survey by the China Tourism Research Institute, more than 200 cities across the country have launched night tourism revitalization plans such as night tour routes, night performances, and night exhibitions. In addition, various new products and formats such as immersive projects and deep experience games have received market attention, further promoting the vitality of industrial development.
It is worth noting that after entering the second half of the summer, in addition to immersive projects, more segmented market products have received attention, and projects such as homestays and city walks that also focus on deep experiences have also gained consumer favor. With the emergence of new trends such as city walks, depth tours, comfort tours, and cultural tours have become new directions for contemporary young people to play, which will give rise to new consumption patterns and drive the upgrading of various consumption formats such as cultural tourism, accommodation, catering, leisure and entertainment, and transportation.
As the main consumer force in the summer tourism market, the comprehensive return of student and parent-child customers is an important sign of the return of the summer peak season model. According to data from an online travel platform, the two groups under 18 years old and 34-43 years old have the highest proportion of travel, with a total of over 50%. Among them, children account for 10%. In addition, the number of bookings for the "first flight ticket in life" during the summer exceeded before the epidemic, and there was a significant increase in the number of new passengers, including children. The demand for "strolling children" became a new driving force for consumption growth.
It is worth noting that this summer's study tours have once again become popular, including local scenic spots, historical sites, museums, etc., which have become popular places to check in for study.
Linyi is a city with rich cultural heritage and a long history. "In recent days, the Linyi Museum has experienced a peak in passenger flow in recent years, with 185190 visitors during the summer." Ji Zhouli, the person in charge of the Linyi Confucian Temple, said that "museum fever" has become a cultural phenomenon, and "going to the museum" has become a way of life. In order to further serve the public and improve the supporting service facilities of the Confucius Temple in Linyi, a "study+ancient architecture+internet celebrity check-in area" has been built along the street houses on the east and west sides of the entrance of the Confucius Temple. With the "urban study in old buildings" as the starting point, a city study has been built to continuously improve the level of public service.
Listen to the historical witness of the Confucius Temple, Grandpa Bai bearded, telling the story of the past of Linyi City. Courtesy of Linyi Museum
Wu Ruoshan, a special researcher at the Tourism Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and director of the New Era Cultural Tourism Research Institute, stated that it is clear that the boundaries of the tourism industry are constantly expanding, and "tourism+" is becoming a new engine for promoting economic and social development.
Innovate and optimize the summer tourism consumption environment
In recent times, the tourism industry has accelerated into a comprehensive recovery stage, and popular tourist attractions are crowded with people. They have also made headlines several times due to the phenomenon of "people following the crowd". While the tourism industry has shown a strong recovery momentum, it is also facing challenges.
Recently, the Office of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism issued a notice on further improving the level of opening and management of summer tourist attractions, requiring all regions to optimize appointment management, strengthen flexible supply, and promote tourist attractions to respond to changes in market demand in a timely manner.
In response to this, various regions actively respond to the combination of high temperatures and peak tourism, providing tourists with a more comfortable travel experience. According to the latest report from Guangzhou Tower, from July 1st to August 2nd, the tower received an average of about 10000 tourists per day, and a maximum reception limit is required. In order to further improve the comfort and experience of tourists, Guangzhou Tower has implemented a daily maximum reception limit of 80%. Sightseeing in different periods is implemented in the scenic spot. Tourists can book tickets in advance through the official website of Guangzhou Tower, WeChat official account and other network platforms to reduce the waiting time on site.
Promoting cultural and tourism consumption is an important lever for promoting consumption and expanding domestic demand. The General Office of the State Council recently forwarded the Measures on Restoring and Expanding Consumption issued by the National Development and Reform Commission, proposing to enrich cultural and tourism consumption, fully implement the paid vacation system, encourage staggered vacations and flexible work schedules, and promote holiday consumption; Strengthen the integration of regional tourism brands and services, and actively organize cultural and tourism consumption promotion activities.
"Tourism is a comprehensive industry that is not only an important driving force for economic development, but also needs to better meet the growing needs of the people for a better life." Ma Yiliang believes that in terms of innovating and optimizing the summer tourism consumption environment, relevant departments should carry out a series of targeted measures and consumption activities to benefit the people. For example, airlines can increase the capacity investment and new development of domestic and international routes in key tourist areas, and accelerate the construction of the "air rail intermodal" network; The China Performance Industry Association can increase the provision of diverse and high-quality cultural and performance performances for summer travelers. At the same time, various industries aggregate high-quality resources, connect the entire upstream and downstream chain of the industry, continuously improve service quality, and jointly promote market prosperity and development.
