Female travelers seen as new driving force in tourism industry

If she travels with her girlfriends, Zhao makes a point of setting aside chances for photo opportunities.

At the moment, she is sailing with her 11-year-old daughter on a cruise ship around the world. "She loves watching animals, and we're going to see as many of them as possible," Zhao said.

She became aware of the cruise in 2019 when it was introduced to the travel market, but the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted her travel plans. Zhao immediately grabbed two tickets for herself and her daughter when they became available last year, and the pair have now been onboard the liner for two months.

"When I first looked at the itinerary of this cruise, I noticed it's very, very different. Sixty percent of the time you can go ashore, and it goes to over 60 countries, 150 ports. And these ports are not just random ones, they are all very famous places, which saves a lot of time," she said.

"If you were to travel on your own, you might not be able to cover this much territory in the same amount of time."

Running her own business means she can take care of her work online, but scheduling her daughter's studies is more difficult.

In the end, she decided to have her daughter attend an online school. Zhao also believes the trip has greater meaning for her daughter than herself.

"It's the right time for her, she doesn't have too many assignments from school and she is able to understand what she's seeing," Zhao said.

While on board, her daughter is studying ancient civilizations and is learning about cultures around the world, such as the Incas in South America.

"These experiences will surely help pave the way for my daughter's future studies," Zhao said.