Thai hotel bookings by Chinese tourists jump 12-fold over Lunar New Year, Trip.com says
>> There has been a big jump in hotel bookings in Thailand by Chinese tourists over the week-long Spring Festival break at month end as travel restrictions ease and as Chinese holidaymakers regain their confidence in overseas trips, according to data from the country’s biggest online travel agent Trip.com Group. Hotel bookings by mainland travelers to Thailand have jumped nearly 21-fold since the beginning of the month from a year ago.
Forwardkeys: Travel from China returns
>> China’s decision to ditch its zero-Covid policy has triggered a surge in flight bookings, according to the latest data from ForwardKeys. On 7th December, Chinese authorities announced that a negative PCR test would no longer be required for air travel between provinces. Domestic flight bookings immediately surged 56% on the previous week and continued to increase 69% the following week.
Russia, China ready to restore mutual travel as soon as possible
>> Russia and China are poised to deepen their strategic cooperation and are ready to restore mutual travel as soon as possible, China’s ambassador to Russia Zhang Hanhui told TASS in an interview, Trend reports.
Buyers from China to return to Singapore property market as travel curbs ease
>> Mainland Chinese buyers are expected to return to Singapore’s housing market, albeit gradually, as border restrictions ease in China, according to real estate consultancy Huttons Asia.
Tourism Authority of Thailand plans first roadshow in China after pandemic
>> Thailand's tourism authority TAT is once again tapping into the Chinese tourism market, planning a roadshow in China during the third week of February. This will be the first roadshow after the Covid-19 pandemic, according to TAT’s Regional Director of East Asia Chuwit Sirivejkul.
World welcomes China's resumption of outbound tourism
>> The global tourism market has responded warmly to China's reopening and actively welcomed Chinese tourists. According to Ctrip data, as of Jan 5, overseas travel orders for the seven days during Spring Festival had surged by 540% and the average order cost had increased by 32% over the same period last year. It is expected that overseas tourist destinations will welcome a large number of Chinese tourists during the holiday.
Greater Bay Airlines to expand aircraft fleet ‘to 22 planes by 2027’ after carrier launches flight to Japan
>> Hong Kong’s Greater Bay Airlines plans to boost capacity by increasing its aircraft fleet to 22 planes by 2027, its CEO has revealed after the company launched a regular service to Japan to entice passengers aching to travel after three years of Covid-19 curbs.
Fliggy adds tours and activities via GlobalTix partnership
>> Fliggy, the online travel platform owned by Alibaba, has formed a partnership with tours and activities distribution specialist GlobalTix. The deal integrates GlobalTix’s marketplace of experiences, including attractions and tours across 40 countries into Fliggy.
China Southern resumes flights to Kenya
>> China Southern Airlines resumed its direct flight between Guangzhou and Nairobi, Kenya, on Monday. Nairobi is one of Africa's air hubs, and the resumption of the flight is expected to help advance the recovery of the international flight market.
China Southern adds two Boeing 737 MAX flights to schedule
>> China Southern Airlines has scheduled at least two Boeing 737 MAX aircraft to return to service later this week. The Chinese Civil Aviation Authority declared the aircraft safe to fly in October following a lengthy grounding of the type. Friday's flights will be the first commercial services for the model by a Chinese airline since March 2019 if completed as scheduled.
