China's tourism industry hit its first peak of 2008 this National Day holiday, being positively affected by the spring snowstorms and the May 12 earthquake, which had delayed many people's travel plans.

According to statistics from the National Tourism Administration, China earned 79.6 billion yuan (US$11.67 billion) in tourism revenue, with a total of 178 million tourists from September 29 to October 5, up 22.1 percent and 24.2 percent respectively year-on-year.

119 tourist resorts listed in the National Holiday Tourism Forecasting System received over 18 million tourists, up by 13.2 percent from last year, and ticket sales grew by 16.4 percent.

The data showed that the travelling demand, which had eased off at the beginning of the year, was much higher now, Zeng Guang, a researcher at China Jianyin Investment Securities, told China Securities Journal.

Sichuan province, which is recovering from the devastating earthquake in May, took in 6.09 billion yuan in tourism revenue, receiving over 16 million tourists in the weeklong holiday, a slight decline from last year. Local authorities there have this year made comprehensive checks on the security of many scenic spots, and have opened a number of new tourism routes.

Post-Olympic tourism boom in Beijing

The Beijing 2008 Olympics may be long gone, but Olympic tourism is a popular part of this year's National Day holiday.

Beijing replaced Shanghai as China's hottest tourist destination this year with its post-Olympic appeal, according to the report released recently by Nielsen and Ctrip.com, the country's biggest online travel service.

The host and co-host cities of the Beijing Olympics saw a remarkable increase in the number of tourists during the National Day holiday. Beijing received over 380,000 people on the first day of the vacation, with 18,000 of them visiting the Olympic green area.

In Beijing, tourism revenue reached 5.25 billion yuan, up 27 percent year-on-year. More than 8 million people flocked to the capital to visit Olympic sights and venues.

It is believed that China will benefit long term from the recent Olympic Games. Reports from the China Academy of Tourism indicate that the Olympic impact will last for three to five years, with a 7 percent increase of inbound travelers every year.

Tourism rebound expected

Annual national tourism revenue for 2008 is expected to increase by 10-15 percent led by the strong rebound of this golden week.

Analysts are positive about the next tourism season although it is normally the off-season. "June was the low point of the tourism industry while it got back on track in July, Zhao Xueqin, an analyst of CITIC Securities, told China Securities Journal, "It is expected that the trend will turn to positive growth and a big rebound will be seen in 2009."

The slowdown of the domestic macro economy and residents' income growth will have limited impact on China's tourism industry, which is still in a sightseeing period and doesn't need large budgets from visitors.

China's tourism plays an important role in stimulating consumption and expanding domestic demand, so it is necessary to promote its development under the pressure of limited overseas demand and a struggling manufacturing industry.

The implementation of the new holiday system and employees' annual holiday system, guidelines published by the National Development and Reform Commission in August, provided new opportunities and promoted the development of the industry.

As a rising industry, tourism is experiencing rapid growth with middle-aged and young people becoming the main force.. Moreover, the effects of Olympic advertising will be seen on tourism in 2009. Hence, annual tourism revenue in 2009 is expected to increase by 15-18 percent, said Zeng Guang.

(China Daily October 10, 2008)