Winter school holidays fuel surge in domestic, outbound travel

China's upcoming winter school holiday, including a newly introduced "snow break" in some regions, is fueling a surge in domestic and outbound travel, according to data from Qunar, a Beijing-based online travel agency.

Urumqi and Altay prefecture in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region will give students up to nine consecutive days off from Nov 29 to Dec 7. Flight bookings from Urumqi during the holiday's time frame rose 45 percent from Nov 15 to 23, while those from Altay increased 48 percent. Warm-weather destinations led demand, with bookings from Urumqi to Sanya, Guangzhou, Beijing, and Xishuangbanna more than doubling year-on-year. Ticket reservations at Xinjiang scenic spots also rose by 16 percent.

Nationwide, many provinces have announced winter breaks, with some lasting up to 45 days. Families are choosing to travel before the Chinese New Year holiday peak, while domestic airfares average 30 percent lower. Bookings for children aged 0–12 rose 60.7 percent year-on-year, and those for teenagers grew by 57.8 percent. Shanghai, Beijing, Sanya in Hainan, and Guangzhou in Guangzhou rank among the top domestic destinations, while warm southern cities such as Zhuhai, Sanya, Jieyang, and Xishuangbanna saw the fastest growth, according to Qunar.

Ice-and-snow destinations are rolling out subsidies to attract tourists. Jilin province has unveiled 100 million yuan worth of winter vouchers and free ski passes for university students, while Inner Mongolia and the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous regions are also expanding incentives.

As a result, winter tourism across the northeast and Xinjiang continues to heat up. Between November and late January, hotel bookings in the Bortala Mongolian autonomous prefecture in Xinjiang rose more than 80 percent year-on-year, while bookings in Dandong in Liaoning, Liaoyuan in Jilin, and Yichun in Heilongjiang climbed around 30 percent.

Outbound travel is also accelerating. Thailand has returned to the top spot among Chinese travelers during the winter vacation. Air ticket bookings to Thailand from mid-January to the Chinese New Year rose 21 percent year-on-year. 

Russia, which is preparing to implement visa-free entry for Chinese visitors according to Russian media outlets, recorded the fastest outbound growth, with ticket bookings rising nearly 1.5 times from a year earlier. Malaysia, South Korea, Singapore, Australia, China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the United States, Egypt, and Indonesia also ranked among the top 10 destinations.