A timely snow in Hangzhou marked the coming of the Year of the Tiger. With the recovery of good weather, the travel market heated up along with the temperature. During the Spring Festival Golden Week, scenic spots in Hangzhou received approximately 4.80 million visitors for a year-on-year increase of 13.56%. Gross income from tourism increased by 15.6% with1.645 billion yuan. Several new features highlighted the 2010 Lunar New Year holiday.

 

Hangzhou citizens were eager for a traditional Chinese new year in suburban areas. Many conventional customs that are seldom found in cities are still well-preserved in urban districts; thus, farmhouses attracted many travelers throughout the festival.

Buddhism is another important feature of the holiday. People prayed for gook luck for the coming year at Soul Retreat Temple, Jingci Temple, Three Buddhist Temples and newly opened temples such as Xiangji Temple and Yongfu Temple.

Restaurants were extremely busy during the seven-day holiday this year. The statistics from several major catering enterprises show that the turnover increased by 30 percent to 50 percent.

Traveling abroad is becoming more popular. On Feb16, Xiaoshan Airport carried 45,000 passengers, as well as more than 40,000 passengers on Feb 14 and Feb 15. On Feb 18, Xiaoshan Airport carried 48,000 people, which was the peak of its passenger flow this year. Major destinations included Bali, Puji Island, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Taipei and Kaohsiung.

By Hu Yanxiang

Editor: Lency