BEIJING — China’s “Golden Week” holiday is set to justify its title with a surge in tourism revenue, according to a survey by China Tourism Academy and Ctrip, an online travel agent. The survey, based on analysis of more than 1.7 billion Ctrip app users, China’s major tourist destinations are expected to receive a total of 589 million visitors during the holiday, up 12 percent from last year. Tourism income is expected to rise 13.5 percent to 478 billion yuan ($70 billion) during the period.
The number of outbound tourists is expected to hit a record high of 6 million, with the Republic of Korea, Thailand and Japan being the most-favored destinations.
The holiday spree is also likely to give rise to public complaints about crowded transport, destinations and restaurants as well as traffic congestion.
According to statistics from China Railway Corporation, on Oct 1, the first day of the holiday, a record of 14.4 million passengers traveled, up 15 percent year on year.