Festival boosts hospitality industry

Scenic spots, homestays enjoy bumper weekend as scores go out on holiday

The domestic hospitality industry is moving toward recovery as Mid-Autumn Festival, which ended on Sept 12, saw diverse and booming travel.

Around 73.41 million domestic trips were made in China during the public holiday, generating 28.68 billion yuan ($4.14 billion) in domestic tourism revenue, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

According to a report by Suzhou-based online travel agency, Tongcheng Travel, the average daily orders of domestic scenic spots increased by 159 percent during the three-day festival compared with the previous weekend. More than 500 scenic spots had seen an increase of 200 percent. The average daily orders of short-distance bus tickets increased by 60 percent compared with the previous weekend.

A report released on Sept 12 by online travel platform Ctrip showed that the average daily orders during this year's Mid-Autumn Festival saw a double-digit increase compared with Dragon Boat Festival in June. It was more than doubled compared with the Tomb Sweeping Day holiday in April and the May Day holiday. As people are advised not to travel, more than 60 percent of guests served by the domestic hospitality industry were from surrounding areas.

The report said homestays became a keyword one week before the festival and the booking volume of homestays increased by about 10 percent compared with the Dragon Boat Festival. Among them, rural homestay searches skyrocketed.

Accordingly, the average price of homestays increased by 27 percent year-on-year. Bookings of homestay accommodations priced at more than 1,000 yuan per night increased by 59 percent compared with last year's Mid-Autumn Festival. A great lodging experience, facilities for children, good food and hospitable hosts were the top four reasons to choose a homestay.