英语新闻丨Tourism industry hits record highs over Spring Festival holiday

China's tourism market showed a better-than-expected performance over the just-ended eight-day Spring Festival holiday, which started on Feb 10.

从2月10日起，为期8天春节假期刚刚结束，中国旅游市场表现好于预期。

Some overseas destinations also offered goodwill gestures and created a festive atmosphere for Chinese travelers, and Spring Festival, or Lunar New Year, has officially been listed as a United Nations floating holiday starting this year, which means UN bodies are encouraged to avoid holding meetings on that day.

一些海外热门景点也纷纷释放善意，为中国游客营造了节日气氛，而从今年开始，春节已被正式列为联合国浮动假期，联合国机构需要尽量避免在春节当天举行会议。

The latest figures from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism showed that traveler numbers as well as tourism-related revenue during the holiday reached record highs, thanks to people's ever-stronger desire to travel, ample market supplies and good tourism policies.

文化和旅游部最新数据显示，人民群众旅游意愿不断增强、市场供给充足和旅游政策大力推动，节日期间出游人次和旅游收入创历史新高。

The ministry said on Sunday that the domestic tourism market saw 474 million trips during the holiday, up 34.3 percent year-on-year. The number marked a 19 percent increase compared with the same holiday period in 2019.

旅游部周日表示，长假期间国内旅游市场接待游客4.74亿人次，同比增长34.3%。与2019年同期假期相比增加了19%。

Domestic tourism-related revenue reached 632.69 billion yuan ($87.95 billion) during the holiday, a striking increase of 47.3 percent year-on-year and 7.7 percent growth from the same holiday period in 2019.

假期期间国内旅游相关收入达到6326.9亿元人民币（合879.5亿美元），同比增长47.3%，较2019年同期增长7.7%。

"I haven't seen so many people jammed in alleys! The food stores and stands along the alley were crowded with people, and I felt like I was floating with the crowds rather than walking by myself," said Lin Jieyi, a 29-year-old who visited Changsha, Hunan province, with her husband during the holiday.

29岁的林杰伊在假期期间和丈夫一起去了湖南长沙，她表示：“我从没见过这么多人挤在巷子里！巷子里的食品店和摊位都挤满了人，我感觉自己只能跟着人潮移动，脚也不听使唤了”。

"I love the city, which is filled with a festive atmosphere. The food here is very delicious, and I almost stuffed myself with rice noodles, pork cooked with peppers, and milk tea every day," she added.

她补充道：“我喜欢这座充满节日气氛的城市。这里的食物非常美味，我每天都在炫辣椒猪肉米粉、喝奶茶”。

Xiao Peng, a researcher with travel portal Qunar, said that the longer holiday this year — it usually lasts seven days in other years — made tourism-focused trips a more popular choice among the Chinese.

旅游门户网站去哪儿网的研究员肖鹏表示，往年春节假期通常为7天，今年假期较长，更多中国人选择出门旅行。

Southern destinations with warmer climate or tropical views, such as Kunming, Yunnan province, and Sanya, Hainan province, remained top choices for tourists, according to travel agencies. Return-flight tickets in economy class departing Sanya were sold out early, leaving only tickets in business or first class.

据旅行社称，气候温暖或拥有热带景观的南方旅游景点，如云南省昆明市和海南省三亚市，仍然是游客的首选。三亚出发的返程经济舱机票早早售空，只剩下公务舱或头等舱机票。

Tuniu, another travel portal, said that destinations and museums with a rich cultural atmosphere or those highlighting cultural elements of the dragon were favored by travelers marking the beginning of the Year of the Dragon.

另一家旅游门户网站途牛表示，龙年伊始，文化氛围浓郁或突出龙文化元素的旅游景点和博物馆受到旅客的青睐。

In addition, some northern destinations with snow and ice views also proved popular during the holiday. Among them, Harbin Ice-Snow World in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang received 329,000 visits from Feb 10 to Wednesday — the first five days of the holiday — with the traveler number marking a surge of 115 percent from the previous year, according to Harbin's culture and tourism bureau.

此外，一些北方的冰雪旅游城市也在春节期间广受欢迎。据哈尔滨市文旅局介绍，2月10日至2月15日（前五天），黑龙江哈尔滨冰雪大世界共接待游客32.9万人次，同比增长115%。

In addition to the prosperous domestic tourism, the inbound and outbound tourism market also delivered a surprisingly good performance during the holiday. The Culture and Tourism Ministry said that around 3.6 million overseas trips were made during the holiday, while the Chinese mainland received about 3.23 million visits from overseas travelers.

除了国内旅游繁荣之外，假期期间出入境旅游市场也呈现出令人意外的好表现。文化和旅游部表示，长假期间出国旅游人数约360万人次，其中内地接待海外游客约323万人次。

A total of 13.52 million inbound and outbound trips were made during the holiday, marking a nearly threefold increase from the holiday period last year, according to the National Immigration Administration.

据国家移民管理局统计，假期期间，全国出入境旅游1352万人次，比去年假期增长近3倍。

Travel portal Trip.com Group said that among the top 10 overseas destinations, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia were the biggest winners, with total bookings to the three destinations marking growth of over 30 percent at the group's platform, thanks to their visa-free policies for Chinese travelers.

旅游门户携程集团表示，十大出境旅游目的地中，新加坡、泰国和马来西亚是最大赢家，受益于对于中国游客的免签政策，这三个目的地的总预订量增长超过30%。

Some festive celebrations and folk shows such as lion dancing, traditional Han costume shows and Chinese cuisine shows were organized at overseas destinations like Bangkok and Paris during the holiday, allowing Chinese travelers and local residents to become immersed in cultural ambience.

假期期间，曼谷、巴黎等海外目的地举办了舞狮、汉服表演、中国美食表演等节庆庆典和民俗表演，让中国游客和当地居民沉浸在文化氛围中。

Dai Bin, president of the China Tourism Academy, said that the industry's performance over the holiday exceeded expectations, thanks to people's strong desire to travel and improved visa policies.

中国旅游研究院院长戴斌表示，得益于人们强烈的旅游愿望和签证政策的改善，假期期间行业的表现超出了预期。

Folk activities highlighting traditional Chinese culture are increasingly attractive to travelers, Dai said. He added that positive reports in foreign media about the Spring Festival holiday will help China build an increasingly positive global image and boost international tourism cooperation.

戴斌表示，彰显中国传统文化的民俗活动对游客的吸引力越来越大。外国媒体对春节假期的积极报道将有助于中国树立日益积极的国际形象，促进国际旅游合作。

visa-free policies

免签政策

portal

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