CBN Friday Special丨China gets ready for “Golden Week” holiday
S: Hello, everyone. Welcome to CBN Friday Special, I’m Stephanie Li.
E: Hi. I am Erin.
S: Finally, it’s the National Day holiday tomorrow. Have you got any plans for the seven-day holiday, Erin?
E: Well, I might just spend time with my family. But I’ve noticed that many people are planning a trip.
S: Yes. The National Day holiday is expected to see a second wave of travel enthusiasm after the summer holiday. Bookings for the so-called Golden Week starting this weekend have seen over 30% daily growth, according to an online tourism platform Trip.com. Tongcheng Travel, another portal, said online searches for its tour products for the holiday rose by 172% last week and searches for flight tickets and hotels increased by 136%.
E: Chinese railways are expected to operate 68.5 million passenger trips during the upcoming week-long National Day holiday travel rush, which lasts from Sept. 28 to Oct. 8, 2022. The passenger flow is expected to peak on October 1, with 8 million passenger trips, said the company.
Airfares are surging for the coming holidays too. Tickets to scenic spots, including from Beijing to Dunhuang in Northwest China's Gansu Province and Shanghai to Lijiang in Southwest China's Yunnan Province, are back to full price.
According to information provider VariFlight, domestic airlines are seeing soaring demand for flights and rising ticket price, compared with this year's Mid-Autumn Festival holiday. The number of domestic passenger flights has gradually recovered and the average daily volume now exceeds 7,000 flights. The total travel during the seven-day holiday could be more than 7.8 million passenger trips. By Sep 25, the average price of the booked air ticket during the National Day holiday surpassed 666 yuan, increasing nearly 13% compared with the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday, said the online travel agency TravelGo.
S: It is worth noticing that outbound international flight bookings for October have also seen a big increase, with more carriers opening new routes or restarting flights. The number of outbound flights for October is currently 1,644, an increase of 35% from the previous month, according to VariFlight. The top three destinations are South Korea, with 20% of the total outbound bookings, followed by Japan on 10% and Thailand on 7%. The US was the fourth most popular destination, despite pandemic-related disruption.
From September 11, China Eastern Airlines resumed the route between Qingdao in East China's Shandong Province and Seoul, with one round trip per week. This is another international route that China Eastern has resumed from Qingdao since the resumption of the Qingdao-Osaka route in mid-August.
In addition, the routes to Europe have got busier. China Southern Airlines said that it will resume Guangzhou-Frankfurt passenger flights from October 7 with one flight every Friday. Air China also resumed the route from Chengdu in Southwest China's Sichuan Province to Frankfurt on September 8.
E: If you want to travel a bit closer to home, Hong Kong and Macau are excellent choices too. The Hong Kong SAR announced the loosening of COVID-19 quarantine measures on Monday, meaning no hotel quarantine but only a 3-day self-monitoring period at home is needed for arrivals, ending the hotel quarantine policy which has been in place for around two years. Following the announcement, searches for international flights to Hong Kong increased fourfold on online travel agency platform Qunar. The most searched departure locations included the US, Australia, UK, Canada, Japan, Singapore, Thailand, Russia and Malaysia, media reported.
Meanwhile, the Tourism Office of the Macau SAR is gearing up for the Golden Week Holiday, boosting efforts in destination marketing and promotion of special offers. As part of ongoing partnerships with e-commerce companies, the office highlights a series of special offers including 50%-off hotel coupons and “buy-one-get-one-free-plus” air tickets during the Golden Week on different platforms, in a bid to attract mainland residents to Macau for longer vacations and a greater boost in tourists’ spending. And tourists will be able to enjoy a themed fireworks show near the Macau Tower at 9 pm tomorrow evening.
S: Wow! I do love a nice fireworks display. It’s been two years since the city’s annual National Day fireworks show got cancelled due to pandemic disruption.
Although outbound travel experience sounds very tempting, short-distance trips, such as local and surrounding tours, still remain the top choice, with domestic scenic spots, hotels and minsu (a Chinese-style bed-and-breakfast establishment) expected to usher in a large number of visitors. Data form TravelGo showed that around 64% of its users decided to take short-distance tours in the coming holiday, and residents of Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong province showed the most enthusiasm for these short trips.
Train tickets from Beijing to other first-tier cities including Shanghai, Tianjin and Chongqing, are already sold out for October 1, the first day of the holiday. The Shanghai-centred rail network is also running short of tickets to neighbouring provinces including Jiangsu and Zhejiang, national online train ticket selling platform 12306.cn showed. “
E: And parent-child travel, rural travel, as well as leisure outdoor travel also become the most popular tourism “themes” during the National Day holiday. People's attention to high-star hotels with various leisure and vacation themes increased by 130% after the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday. And hotel reservations for the Golden Week in “less popular cities” had increased 70% compared to 2020. According to travel platform Qunar, Hegang in Northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Hanzhong in Northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, Karamay in Northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region topped the list for “niche travel destinations” among Chinese tourists.
S: If you haven’t got what you’re looking for in all the travelling tips mentioned above, how about a staycation with in-depth urban tours and various light outdoor games? According to TravelGo, the search volume for various light outdoor travels has increased by over 150% month-on-month since September. Light outdoor sports including citywalks, frisbee, flag football, paddle board, cycling and kayaking have become popular experiences among young tourists.
E: For those who prefer to stay put during the weeklong holiday, why not splurge a little on movies? The National Day holiday is one of three golden periods for releasing new movies, and Chinese moviegoers are already talking online about which movies they plan to see and predicting which they think will perform the best at the box office.
Seven films are set to debut during the holiday, with four being "main melody" films - realistic patriotic works focusing on stories about the nation, the Communist Party of China and the People's Liberation Army - and three are animated movies.
S: Movie industry insiders predict that the four patriotic films will be the big winners during the National Day holiday, hopefully giving a big boost to the Chinese 2022 box office, which has been on the road to recovery. Data from Chinese ticketing platform Maoyan shows that the total pre-sale box office for the new films during the upcoming holiday currently sits at 80 billion yuan by midday Friday, with “Home Coming” grossing 45 million yuan and leading the box office.
E: The big hit “Home Coming” is based on a real-life event in which Chinese diplomats devoted themselves to evacuating riot-stricken Chinese citizens. Chinese film critics are calling this the most promising film of the holiday period. It combines patriotic themes and the characteristics of commercial films such as action scenes and a good narrative, which are more attractive to audiences, said an industry insider. Netizens on Chinese books and films review platform Douban commented that they are curious about the film's focus on Chinese diplomats and believe that the movie will be extremely moving.
The remaining two "main melody" films “Steel Will” and “Ordinary Hero” have together grossed more than 16 million yuan in pre-sales, which are also based on real-life stories of ordinary people. One commenter on Douban said that it is great to see the lesser-known details of historical events put on the big screen and see how powerful China is.
The patriotic films' box office popularity indicates audiences' recognition of the filmmakers' innovative and enterprising spirit in narrating Chinese stories. Film critics also note that these "main melody" movies are a good fit for the atmosphere of the National Day holidays.
S: Exiting! I’ve already got so many plans on how I’m going to spend this long autumn break. But whether you opt to go on a trip, or to have a cozy staycation while watching some movies, my final tip is: always check the latest Covid-19 epidemic control measures at your destination before leaving.
And that’s it for today and enjoy your golden week. Bye!
“十一”黄金周进入倒计时，你想好怎么过了吗？
马蜂窝大数据显示，近一周“十一去哪儿”搜索热度上涨90%。随着“十一”临近，国庆旅游预订热度呈现增长趋势，携程、途牛、马蜂窝、飞猪、去哪儿等多个平台披露，近期国庆旅游日均订单增长速度超过30%。在疫情等不确定因素的影响下，本地游、周边游仍是今年国庆出游主旋律。
据中国国家铁路集团有限公司消息，铁路国庆黄金周运输工作自9月28日持续至10月8日，为期11天，全国铁路预计发送旅客6850万人次，日均发送旅客623万人次，10月1日为客流最高峰，预计发送旅客800万人次。
飞常准民航看板数据显示，临近国庆，国内客运航班量已从5000班次以下开始逐步回升，日均执行航班量超7000班次，预计国庆假期间日均执行客运航班量或在1万班次以内。“十一”假期国内航线机票平均支付价格为666元，与中秋期间相比上涨13%。国际机票方面，随着多个国家和地区入境检疫政策放宽，相关国际航线机票搜索量和订单量出现明显涨幅。据飞常准数据，目前10月份国际航班数量已达1644班次，环比增长了35%。韩国、日本、泰国是国际航班的热门目的地。
从出游人次的具体数据来看，受疫情影响，将7天长假拆分成若干个一、两天的本地游、周边游将成为今年国庆出游的消费主导，高档酒店、乡村旅游有望保持较快增长。周期更短的碎片化出游需求更为突出，出游人次占比为64%。加上国庆期间高速公路对七座（含七座）以下的小客车免收通行费，更多用户选择自驾的出游方式，近一周“十一自驾游”热度上升100%。
今年国庆，短途游出行需求旺盛。文旅行业专家指出，短途旅游热度高于长线游在近三年的“十一”黄金周已成为常态，今年的表现更为突出。特色主题是今年“十一”黄金周短途游的一大亮点。本地周边游的热点是文化打卡和登高望远，年轻人喜欢户外运动和露营等新兴度假方式，秋收游、乡村游则成为亲子游、家庭游的选择。
马蜂窝玩乐大数据显示，文化打卡和登高赏秋是游客关注最多的本地周边玩乐方向。沿北京的中轴线骑行，去杭州良渚文化遗址公园秋游，在南京牛首山的佛顶宫感受佛教文化，都是游客热衷的打卡形式。今年的重阳佳节落在“十一”黄金周内，登高的习俗受到重视，不少游客选择在秋景明媚的户外度过佳节。各地“登山”“徒步”搜索量均有不同程度上涨。
年轻人成为今年国庆出游消费主体。这届年轻人喜好亲近自然，骑行、露营等度假新方式也是出游热点。年轻人爱好的各种新型户外活动，特别是飞盘、骑行、尾波冲浪等潮流运动热度持续在线。携程数据显示，近期飞盘、皮划艇、骑行一日游产品的搜索热度分别增长50%、74%和80%。
今年的重阳佳节恰逢“十一”黄金周，不少年轻人计划将赏秋和重阳登高的习俗结合，和家人一起在秋景明媚的户外共度佳节。马蜂窝旅行玩乐大数据显示，各地“登山”“徒步”搜索量均有不同程度上涨。此外，国庆期间恰逢秋收，以秋收为主题的体验游、乡村游表现惹眼。乡村旅游中亲子家庭比重占据了35%，亲子家庭下单的乡村酒店订单量同比增长了43%。
还有些“玩心较野”的人蠢蠢欲动欲出境玩，港澳出境游有好消息传来。9月23日，香港宣布9月26日起实行0+3政策，即入境香港不再需要酒店隔离，直接3天居家检疫。内地游客不再限制省份，可通过来港易计划免除到港隔离。澳门的自由行则又恢复凭核酸报告入境无需隔离，而且据澳门特别行政区新闻局消息，停办近3年的内地旅行团赴澳旅游预计在今年10月底或11月初恢复落实，据悉从广东、上海、浙江、江苏、福建四省一市率先恢复。受政策调整影响，游客前往港澳地区更便捷，港澳地区亦发布消费利好政策刺激旅游消费，港澳游或在国庆回温。
除了出门旅行，看电影也是国庆长假的热门消费项目。目前有《万里归途》等4部主旋律影片和《新灰姑娘2》等3部动画电影逐鹿国庆档。从已经公布的影片来看，今年的国庆档，主旋律电影当道。
根据猫眼专业版，截至9月30日，国庆档预售总票房突破8000万元，《万里归途》以4500万元的预售成绩领跑，《钢铁意志》《平凡英雄》紧随其后。灯塔专业版数据显示，截至9月29日19时，《钢铁意志》《平凡英雄》的预售票房分别为819万元及793万元。
近年来的国庆档，主旋律影片屡屡“破圈”，受到观众的喜爱。近几年，主旋律电影开始类型化的探索，在题材选择和叙事方式上越来越成熟，电影表达的浓厚情感引发观众的情感共振，国产主旋律电影变得会讲故事了。
比如《万里归途》改编自真实事件，首次揭秘中国外交官撤侨的幕后故事。电影中，努米亚共和国发生暴乱，撤侨行动刻不容缓，外交官逆行深入战区，营救被困同胞。首映礼上，观众表示，“最真实的震撼”、"又燃又感动"是大家最为直观的感受。此外，有观众表示题材很有“新鲜感"，看到了外交官鲜为人知的另一面，"印象中他们都是西装革履、冷静睿智的形象，没想到他们奔波在撤侨前线，也会面临各种生死考验，太不容易了"。除了题材新颖，《万里归途》紧张刺激的情节和真实沉浸的视觉效果也得到许多好评。电影还原了撤侨路上外交官和同胞面临的种种艰险，"太真实了，隔着银幕都感受到了幕后的惊心动魄，为他们捏了一把汗"。
《钢铁意志》、《平凡英雄》同样改编自真实事件，而《搜救》则是国内首部公安搜救题材影片，讲述了“极寒绝境”中搜救警察及雪域搜救队不离不弃创造生命奇迹的故事。这些影片都把刻画普通人、平凡人的事迹作为重点，观众将会看到一件件由平凡人创造的不平凡奇迹。网友表示，已经准备好纸巾搓手等待在电影院看到这些催泪影片，享受电影带来的感动和惊喜。
Executive Editor: Sonia YU
Editor: LI Yanxia
Host: Stephanie LI
Writer: Stephanie LI, HUANG Yuyan
Sound Editor: HUANG Yuyan
Graphic Designer: ZHENG Wenjing, LIAO Yuanni
Produced by 21st Century Business Herald Dept. of Overseas News.
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编委: 于晓娜
策划、编辑：李艳霞
播音：李莹亮
撰稿：李莹亮、黄雨嫣
音频制作：黄雨嫣
设计：郑文静、廖苑妮
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