Golden Week: No pain, no gain
Complaints about the National Day holiday,or the Golden Week, which people jokingly referred to as a "paid painful journey", came from all quarters.
Now, experts have suggested extending the holiday or even reintroducing the weeklong Labor Day holiday in May to reduce the flow of tourists.
Some even claimed the holiday does more harm than good to both the health of the tourists and the development of the economy, and advised the widespread introduction of paid vacations instead of the current system of long, nationwide holidays.
Tourist resorts came under severe pressure because of the sudden influx of visitors and measures to cap numbers were employed in some of the most popular places.[Full story]
Gains
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Robust home sales during holiday Home sales in major cities didn't lose steam during the weeklong National Day holiday, which started on Oct 1, as homebuyers scrambled to sign contracts before they are priced out of the market. Housing markets in Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing and Hainan remained bullish during the long holiday period, encouragingproperty developers and sellers to take a more aggressive stance than before.[Full story] |
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Rail traffic hits new high Railway traffic during China's seven-day National Day holiday hit record high with over 70 million passengers, statistics from the China Railway Corporation showed on Monday. On Monday, the last day of the Golden Week, railways across the country are scheduled to carry 8.5 million passengers, according to the company.[Full story] |
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Consumption rises during Golden Week Inexpensive mass consumption was popular among China's holiday-makers during the seven-day National Day holiday, or a Golden Week, highlighting the country's frugality drive. Sales revenues of national retail and catering sectors reached 870 billion yuan ($142 billion) from Oct 1 to 7, rising 13.6 percent year-on-year, according to the report released Monday by the Ministry of Commerce.[Full story] |
Pains
Chinese tourists killed in Pacific air accident Two Chinese tourists and a local pilot were killed when a light aircraft crashed after taking off from West Tinian Airport in the Pacific for Saipan Island early on Sunday morning. Another four Chinese people aboard the aircraft were injured in the crash. |
Chinese tourist dead in plane crash in Nepal A Chinese tourist and a pilot have been confirmed dead in an ultralight aircraft crash in Pokhara, in western Nepal, Thursday morning. According to local police, the two-seater aircraft belonging to Avia Club Pokhara crashed near Shanti Stupa, a famous tourist attraction of the city, at 9:30 am. Prabin Gauchan of Avia Club identified the dead as Liu Jian of China and pilot Stephen Shrestha who was also the proprietor of the aircraft. [Full story] |
Joys
Tourism in Spotlight
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Chinese tourists see more, spend more A new breed of Chinese tourists are emerging. They're better-educated, better-off and ever more adventurous. They're also traveling more, seeing more and spending more. One of the most popular destinations for Chinese tourists these days is Thailand. Chinese holidaymakers learn to scuba dive in Thailand. The Chinese abroad are more adventurous than ever before seeking out 5-star hotels, designer-shopping and adventure sports. [Full story] |
New tourism law spurs independent travel China's first tourism law, aiming to upgrade the country's tourism industry, has caused travel agencies to raise prices, spurring more Chinese to become independent travelers. Having learned that a travel agency's fare for a six-day Thailand tour has surged by 2,000 yuan ($325) following the new law, which took effect on Oct 1, Li Qianying and her friend are planning to backpack around the country instead. [Full story] |
Tourists still behaving badly as new law dawns Chinese tourism has made the headlines for the wrong reasons in 2013 and the country's first tourism law came into effect on Oct 1, urging people to behave when traveling. Unfortunately for some, the following photos during the one-week National Day holiday show just the opposite. Media outlets, including People's Daily, have been promoting awareness of behaving well. Parents have been especially targeted to cultivate their children's good behavior in public places. [Full story] |
Comments
Tourist boom reflects employmentstability
While some people complain of tourist overcrowding having turned China's seven-day Golden Week into a "golden mess", economists have interpreted the phenomenon in a more positive way.
"The strong Golden Week tourism data suggests, firstly, stable employment, rising wages and robust consumer confidence," Lu Ting and Robbie Li, China economists with Bank of America Merrill Lynch, said in a research note. [Full story]
'Restrict tourist flow to ensure order'
The nation's top tourism industry authority called on Thursday for measures to cap visitor numbers amid chaotic scenes at some of China's top attractions.
The National Tourism Administration urged tourism authorities to take the measures as the nation witnessed a travel peak due to the seven-day National Day holiday, which started on Tuesday.
The statement was released after tens of thousands of tourists were stranded for hours on Wednesday at Sichuan province's world-famous Jiuzhaigou Valley. [Full story]
McKinsey's China oracle and his hits and misses
He blew it. Back in January, Gordon Orr went out on a limb. The Shanghai-based director with United States-based management consulting firm McKinsey & Co predicted that China would surprise the world in 2013 by abolishingnational holidayweeks.
With millions of Chinese just wrapping up their celebration of National Day, it's clear that his forecast missed the mark. But Orr, who has been publishing predictions for McKinsey for five years, admits that one was "more a hope than an expectation". [Full story]