This year's Lantern Festival, falling on February 24, coincided with the weekend, resulting in a slight peak in travel activities at major scenic spots in Shenzhen following the Spring Festival holiday. Citizens enthusiastically engaged in various Lantern Festival entertainment activities, such as visiting lantern exhibitions, solving lantern riddles, savoring delicacies, and enjoying fireworks.
Short-distance and local trips emerged as the preferred choice for travelers during the Lantern Festival. According to data from Ctrip, a leading travel platform in China, over the Lantern Festival weekend, the number of trips around Shenzhen increased by 93% compared to the same period last year. Shenzhen residents showed a preference for destinations in surrounding cities like Guangzhou, Huizhou, Dongguan, Zhuhai, and Shanwei. Booking data from the travel portal Tuniu.com reveals that among domestic travelers during the Lantern Festival, 57% opted for short-distance or local trips, with most choosing 1 or 2-day itineraries.
Popular domestic destinations included cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, Sanya, Nanjing, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Xi'an, Haikou, Kunming, and Tianjin, drawing significant attention from tourists. Local attractions organized distinctive folk activities, including lantern exhibitions, solving lantern riddles, tasting sweet glutinous rice dumplings, exploring markets, and dressing in traditional Chinese clothes, known as Hanfu, enhancing the overall tourist experience.
Concerning long-distance domestic travel, island destinations like Sanya, Haikou, Beihai, and winter escape locations such as Kunming, Lijiang, and Xishuangbanna experienced a surge in travel during the Lantern Festival. Additionally, ice and snow destinations like Harbin, Shenyang, and Changchun witnessed a peak in tourist traffic. China's Hong Kong and Macao also ranked high in booking popularity.
Faced with elevated hotel and flight prices during the Spring Festival and peak travel periods, many travelers considered the Lantern Festival as an alternative for outbound travel. Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Maldives, Japan, Russia, New Zealand, UAE, Australia, and Nepal emerged as favored choices for outbound travelers.