'Snow break' reshaping domestic travel biz

As temperatures plunge across northern parts of China, consumer sentiment is heating up, as a newly introduced "snow break" is swiftly reshaping travel and local spending patterns.

Following the rollout of "spring and autumn breaks" in provinces such as Zhejiang and Sichuan, regions including the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region and Jilin province have introduced a short winter hiatus for students. Intended as a targeted respite, the policy also serves as an economic tool to stimulate spending and improve the dynamic between supply and consumer demand, said industry experts.

Qunar, a Beijing-based online travel agency, said flight bookings from Xinjiang's Urumqi and Altay prefecture, where schools are taking nine days off from Nov 29 to Dec 7, rose around 45 to 48 percent during the holiday's time frame from Nov 15-23.Bookings for children aged 12 and under jumped more than 60 percent year-on-year, while those for teenagers grew nearly 60 percent.

Transport operators have added capacity to meet the surge. China Railway Urumqi Group Co Ltd will run 119 temporary trains to destinations including Yining and Kuitun, while China Southern Airlines has raised its daily flights in Urumqi to 192. The carrier reported that bookings for flights departing Urumqi and Altay during the holiday period climbed 51 percent and 99 percent year-on-year, respectively, driven largely by young travelers.

Unlike traditional winter vacations, the "snow break" lasts only five to nine days and is tailored to regions rich in ice and snow resources. Jilin province has designated Dec 3 to 7 as its "snow break", offering free access to 39 certified ski resorts and skating rinks for students, with accompanying parents receiving a 30 percent discount. Students can also enter all winter-operating A-level tourist attractions free of charge.

In Khorgos, a border city in Xinjiang, where the "snow break" is split into two periods, Nov 28-30 and Jan 1-5 next year, schools have shifted toward outdoor activities during the holiday. "We designed programs such as 'science in ice and snow' and arranged discounted access to local ski resorts," said Yan Siyuan, vice-principal of Guomen Junior Middle School in Khorgos.

For many families, the holiday has prompted immediate purchases. Ayiboli, a 14-year-old student at Yan's school, said his parents bought him new skiing gear ahead of a week of outdoor activities, adding that the snowy border scenery made him appreciate his hometown more.

Wu Liyun, a professor at the China Academy of Culture and Tourism of Beijing International Studies University, said the "snow break" mirrors the aim of the earlier "spring and autumn breaks" by helping smooth tourism flows and ease the pressure on Golden Week travel peaks.

"By carving out a holiday window in early December, traditionally a lull before the New Year and the Spring Festival holidays, the policy turns an off-season into a pre-holiday peak," Wu said, adding that the "snow break" is, in essence, another policy tool for stimulating consumption and that its foundations stem from continued national-level support.

In March, central authorities encouraged pilot programs for "spring and autumn breaks" in a plan aimed at boosting consumption. In September, nine central departments issued measures to expand services consumption, and in late November the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and five other central departments jointly released an action plan to improve the alignment between consumer-goods supply and demand.

Wu said that the "snow break" has a direct effect on winter consumption as rising participation in snow sports boosts equipment rentals and purchases, along with travel, accommodation and related services.

But she cautioned that its impact depends on broader adoption and supporting leave policies for parents. "If only a few cities implement the 'snow break', and parents cannot take time off, many children may end up staying home, limiting the effect," she said.

Jilin has encouraged employers to prioritize leave arrangements for staff accompanying children during the holiday.

Travel demand is also shifting southward beyond ice-and-snow tourism. Qunar said flights from Urumqi to warm-weather destinations such as Sanya, Hainan province, Guangzhou, Guangdong province, and Xishuangbanna, Yunnan province more than doubled year-on-year during the "snow break".

Wu said the newly introduced breaks can facilitate two-way consumption flows between the north and south. With southern provinces like Guangdong exploring "spring and autumn breaks" and regions like Jilin and Xinjiang experimenting with the "snow break", a nationwide rollout with locally adjusted dates could activate consumption from the post National Day Golden Week period through the traditionally quiet winter.

Dilnaz Dilmurat contributed to this story.