Millions spread their wings on overseas travel taking off

Updated: 2016-02-01 08:24

By Wang Wen(China Daily)

60 percent of the surveyed are willing to travel abroad during Spring Festival instead of visiting their families.[Photo/CFP]

Spring Festival is not only a traditional seven-day holiday when Chinese residents go home for family reunions. It's also a time many people prefer to spend traveling.

Ctrip.com International, the largest online travel agency in China, forecasts that nearly 6 million outbound trips will be taken during this Spring Festival, setting a record for the Golden Week.

Meanwhile, Chinese travelers' budgets for trips have been increasing in recent years. The average spending of Chinese outbound travelers for Spring Festival will exceed 10,000 yuan ($1,520), excluding local shopping costs, the agency said.

Airbnd saw a 700 percent growth in number of Chinese to book rooms.[Photo/China Dailu]

The main expenses are for air tickets, accommodation, tour guides, transportation, visa fees and insurance, said Dai Yu, marketing director of Ctrip.

Some self-guided tourists also like to spend a lot on unique experiences, such as hot-air balloon rides in New Zealand, opera in London or whale watching in Hawaii, Dai said, adding that during Golden Week, Chinese get into a generous holiday mood.

Statistics from Mafengwo.cn, a tourism information-sharing website, showed that online bookings per capita for overseas independent trips was up 30 percent to 6,800 yuan this year.