Chinese tourists travel more during the Lunar New Year holidays

• China saw 226 million domestic trips during the Lunar New Year holiday, a 74% surge from last year.
• China lifted all travel curbs under its now-abandoned zero-Covid policy.
• For the first time in three years, Chinese people were free to travel without the hassle of quarantine.

According to official media, China made 226 million domestic journeys for the Lunar New Year vacation, an increase of 74% from the previous year after the government abolished all travel restrictions imposed under its now-abandoned zero-Covid policy.

Chinese citizens may travel without worry or bother for the first time in three years during the most significant holiday of the year, when families reconnect in their hometowns to celebrate the new year or go on vacation together.

This week-long holiday, which ended on Friday, saw the most visits completed within China since 2020. They cover all types of travel, such as those taken by vehicles, trains, and even boats.

The number was still much below pre-pandemic levels, though. Over the holiday in 2019, 421 million domestic travels were made.

Due to the pent-up demand for travel, China’s tourist sites, from the sunny beaches on Hainan island to the historic towns in the mountainous Yunnan region, were overrun with tourists throughout the vacation.

After China’s borders were officially reopened earlier this month, international travel also increased dramatically. According to the National Immigration Administration, 2.88 million visits were made across the border for the Lunar New Year vacation, an increase of 120% from the previous year.

12.53 million cross-border journeys were made in 2019 during the Lunar New Year vacation, according to the Xinhua news agency.

Following widespread demonstrations about strict lockdowns and Covid tests, the Chinese government abruptly ended its expensive zero-Covid program in December.

The infection spread quickly across the nation after the sudden removal of limitations, catching the healthcare establishment off guard. Hospitals and cemeteries were overburdened, leaving locals scrambling for fever medications and antiviral medications.

It is challenging to determine the severity and scope of the enormous outbreak because once-common Covid testing has largely been abandoned and the government has stopped reporting the majority of infections.

Chinese health authorities recently revealed more precise epidemic statistics that suggests the outbreak has already peaked amid international criticism of China’s limited data release.

The Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Wednesday that recorded clinic visits on January 23 had decreased 96.2% from a month earlier, when cases were at their peak.

In contrast to more than 6.9 million on December 22, just 15,000 persons tested positive for Covid via PCR tests on January 23 according to the CDC data.

It’s unclear how much testing has changed during that period, which could have an impact on those numbers, or how many people have been affected since China shifted away from zero-Covid in early December.

Wu Zunyou, the head epidemiologist at the CDC, said on January 21 that 80% of the nation had already contracted the disease.

The number of Covid deaths that are formally recorded is also dropping. China recorded 6,364 Covid-related deaths between January 20 and January 26, according to the CDC, which is approximately half of the 12,658 deaths reported a week earlier.

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