CHINA. Travel bookings to Sanya, Hainan, have surged since 1 February as restrictions on travel from low-infection areas of China were eased, travel analytics company ForwardKeys reported today. The leap in bookings – which exceeded 2019 levels for travel to Sanya during the comparable period – came just in time for the Lunar New Year holiday period, which began this week.
VP Insights Olivier Ponti said in a LinkedIn post today: “Our ticketing data shows once more the extreme volatility of the travel sector in times of COVID.
“Over a month ago, when new strains of COVID were appearing, the Chinese government told people not to travel during the Chinese New Year period; and local provinces followed suit, with some announcing quarantine measures. Consequently, bookings stalled.
“However, as the outbreaks have been contained in recent days; and local authorities have relaxed their stance, with the result that flight bookings have immediately rebounded. A clear example is Sanya, the holiday destination in the South China Sea.
“In the first week of January, issued tickets to Sanya peaked briefly at over 80% of their 2019 level; but during the month, they declined to around 50%. Then, on 1 February, the [Hainan] government announced that travellers from low-risk areas would no longer need to take a PCR test before visiting the island. Immediately, bookings shot up to well over 100%.”
The bookings trend comes as a boost to the offshore duty free channel in Hainan Island, with new stores opening in recent weeks and heavy investment from brands aiming to capture spend from visiting Chinese domestic travellers.
