CHINA DAILY | HONG KONG EDITION Tuesday, December 8, 2020 | 17 LIFE The year tourism was saved from the brink

By YANG FEIYUE capacity. Less than an hour after [email protected] the restriction was lifted, the num­ ber of searches for trans­provincial With tourism still bouncing back group tours on online travel agency from the impact of the COVID­19 Qunar jumped nearly 400 percent. pandemic, industry players contin­ Another online travel agency, ue to innovate and reinvent them­ Trip.com, saw searches on its own selves to attract travelers. site surge to about 500 percent. As the year draws to a close and the industry is yet to make a full Macao recovery, we look back on major More than 227,000 inbound tourism stories of the year, mark­ tourists — 88 percent of whom ing a tumultuous period of ups came from the Chinese mainland and downs. — visited the region in August, according to the Macao Special Cruise quarantine Administrative Region’s Statistics In February, 3,711 people were and Census Service. From Sept 23, quarantined aboard cruise ship all domestic tourists from low­risk Diamond Princess in Yokohama, regions can apply for tourist Japan, after a man who disem­ endorsement to visit Macao. In barked in Hong Kong tested posi­ September, the SAR government tive for the coronavirus. This led to prepared coupons worth $36.3 a mass cancellation of cruise trips, million for mainland tourists to marking the beginning of a global use in hotels and various shops. tourism recession. Fliggy subsidies Consumption incentives Alibaba’s online travel arm, In March, the Nanjing govern­ Fliggy, initiated a 10 million yuan Locals dressed up in Miao ethnic group attire are ready for their traditional “long­table banquet” in Danzhai Wanda village in Qiandongnan ment offered coupons worth 318 subsidy program in early Septem­ Miao and Dong autonomous prefecture in Guizhou province. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY million yuan ($48.5 million) to ber. The program covered tens of increase the purchasing power of thousands of hotels across the locals and boost recovery of the ser­ country, as well as transportation vice sector. Later that month, and access to scenic spots and Hangzhou issued coupons worth theme parks. During the second 1.68 billion yuan. Other cities across week of September, hotel book­ the country soon followed suit. ings for the National Day holiday surged by 190 percent from the Crafts, heritage Virtual tourism previous week, and air ticket sales Major scenic spots around the increased by 160 percent. globe began offering virtual travel experiences for people cooped up at Fly at will home in March. Liang Jianzhang, From June, a dozen domestic air­ chairman and cofounder of line companies, including Hainan Trip.com started a wave of tourism Airlines and China Eastern Air­ brighten up Guizhou promotion through livestreaming, lines, launched fly­at­will schemes. selling 8,000 nights of hotel stays in Tourists quickly snapped up all the 1 minute and 41 sets of “hotel + sce­ fly­at­will flight tickets. Those who More tourists are attracted to the rich and diverse landscapes nic spot tickets” per second. Potala bought China Eastern’s “unlimited Palace in the Tibet autonomous weekend flights” package for 3,322 and culture that the province has to offer, Xu Lin reports. region, the Palace of Versailles in yuan redeemed more than 65,000 France, and the British Museum tickets from June 27 to 28, and near­ isitors have long heard Museum in Guiyang, along with also launched live online tours. ly 90,000 trips were made using the about the great Huanggu­ other national intangible cultural promotion from July 4 to 5. oshu Waterfall in Guizhou heritage inheritors. They are also Labor Day recovery province — one of the offered subsidies when they visit China’s tourism saw strong Preemptive rights largestV waterfalls in China. other cities for exhibitions. recovery during the May Day holi­ The Universal Beijing resort Apart from such amazing natural “The government policy helps day. With epidemic control meas­ launched 10,000 “preemptive scenes, many parts of Guizhou boast promote intangible cultural heri­ ures in place, the tourism market right” packages on Oct 21, which rich and exotic ethnic cultural heri­ tage. It also increases the sales of my recovered to 50 percent of the level sold out in just 131 seconds. Similar tage and unique local customs. whistles as more people know about during the same period last year, packages launched on Oct 23 and One example is Danzhai county in them,” says Wang, who recently according to the Ministry of Cul­ 28 were also sold out within sec­ Qiandongnan Miao and Dong visited the village for an exhibition. ture and Tourism. There was a onds. Customers who bought these autonomous prefecture, which has In Danzhai, the Kala village is total of 115 million domestic tour­ packages have the right to buy tick­ seven national, 24 provincial and famous for its beautiful bamboo ists during the holiday, generating ets five days before general sale and more than 100 prefecture and coun­ birdcages made by the local Miao a revenue of 47.56 billion yuan. A can choose when to visit the theme ty­level intangible cultural heritage people, who have used them to raise total of nine provinces, including park. Overall construction of the sites. Guizhou ranked in the top laughingthrush for generations. Guangdong and Fujian, saw tour­ park is expected to be finished by three destinations that Chinese Wang Qiu, a local from Kala vil­ ist numbers exceed 10 million the end of the year. tourists want to visit most after the lage, says the birdcage making each. Tourism revenue exceed 10 COVID­19 pandemic, according to a industry has boosted the local econ­ billion yuan in Guangdong, Hunan Tibetan icon report by online travel agency omy and tourism, attracting visitors and Jiangxi provinces, respective­ Tamdrin, a 20­year­old from Lit­ Trip.com released in April. to buy birdcages as souvenirs and ly. Scenic spots across the country ang county in Garze Tibetan auton­ In late November, the Guizhou enjoy getaways in their homestays. limited visitor numbers to no more omous prefecture, was appointed provincial government announced “Villagers are able to support their than 30 percent of their maximum to promote tourism in Litang after that all impoverished counties have families with traditional skills and capacity during the holiday. attracting online attention when a been lifted out of poverty. they don’t have to leave their home­ video of him smiling broadly in tra­ Duan Qiang, chairman of the town to be migrant workers in big Cross-provincial tourism ditional Tibetan costume was World Tourism Alliance, says this is cities,” says the 32­year­old. Travel agencies were given per­ uploaded on Douyin, known as partly thanks to the province’s She learned the skill, which has a mission by the Ministry of Culture TikTok internationally. Tamdrin efforts focusing on its tourism 400­year history, from her father­in­ and Tourism on July 14 to resume then posted a short video introduc­ industry. “The integration of intan­ law, who is a provincial intangible group tours that crossed provincial ing his white horse, attracting mil­ gible cultural heritage and tourism cultural heritage inheritor. He is one borders, following suspension due lions of views and followers. The has greatly contributed to Guizhou’s of the pioneers in the village who to the pandemic. The limit on visi­ Tamdrin effect caused searches for poverty alleviation work,” Duan traveled afar in the early days to sell tor numbers allowed in tourist Litang on Trip.com from Nov 23 to says. birdcages in other regions. attractions was also increased from 29 to shoot up 620 percent com­ China Tourism News recently The local government offers them 30 to 50 percent of maximum pared to the previous week. introduced 12 intangible cultural subsidies if they train those who live heritage tourist routes selected by below the poverty line to make bird­ experts and scholars from more cages. than 160 routes submitted from Wang says the price of a birdcage across the country. The aim was to can range from a couple of hundred get tourism corporations to work to more than 3,700 yuan ($566) more closely with intangible cultur­ depending on the quality of the al heritage institutions, and enrich workmanship. Birdcages with tourism offerings in the market. exquisite carvings will fetch more Among the 12 recommended routes, handsome prices. one of them is located in Guizhou. Some inheritors have trans­ In regions like Danzhai in Guiz­ formed the bamboo cages into hou, intangible cultural heritage lamps or revolving bookshelves, becomes an integrated experience Clockwise from top: The “long­table banquet” is a tradition of Miao which can make unique decorations for visitors and an essential way for ethnic group with thousands of people dining on the street to mark a at home. locals to make a living. festival. The Miao ethnic group’s traditional silver ornaments. An Yang Na’niumian, a 46­year­old Danzhai Wanda village is 145 kilo­ ethnic Miao woman works in a local factory in Danzhai county to local from a remote Danzhai village, meters from Guiyang Longdongbao make batik cloth to support her family. PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY started work at a local factory in International Airport. It is a major May to make batik cloth with a project started by the Wanda Group monthly salary of more than 2,000 to help the county shake off poverty. At night, tourists can take a yuan. The county managed to achieve this breathtaking walk across a trans­ She will make a draft of auspi­ goal last year. Villagers are able to parent glass bridge above the river, cious motifs like flowers and birds Since its opening in 2017, the sce­ dress up in traditional Miao cos­ with a pencil on a cloth and apply nic area has attracted more than 19 support their families tumes to take photos, and soak in melted wax to it, which will be million tourists to its picturesque with traditional skills the relaxing hot springs. removed after dyeing. scenery and architecture, exotic eth­ There is also a chance to rub Like many of her fellow villagers, nic culture and intangible cultural and they don’t have shoulders with intangible cultural Yang learned the Miao traditional heritage activities. to leave their heritage inheritors. batik craft of dyeing from her moth­ Walking along a street lined with Wang Dengshu learned the art of er when she was a teenager. Clockwise from top left: A group of tourists who bought China traditional architectural buildings, hometown to be making animal­shaped clay whis­ “I used to be a housewife, so this Eastern’s “unlimited weekend flights” package departs from tourists can learn more about the migrant workers in tles at the age of 18. His elegant col­ job allows me to supplement the Shanghai Pudong International Airport to Guizhou’s Zunyi on Miao ethnic group’s traditional sil­ orful whistles are often shaped into family income with my professional July 16. YIN LIQIN / CHINA NEWS SERVICE The ancient town of Ciqikou in ver ornaments and embroidery. In big cities.” animals from the Chinese zodiac. skills,” she says. Chongqing sees crowds of visitors in early August after travel one store, tourists can learn how to Wang Qiu, a villager in Danzhai, Since 2015, the 52­year­old has agencies were given permission to resume group tours that cross dye a handkerchief in traditional Guizhou province been invited to showcase his crafts­ Contact the writer at provincial borders. Wuhan’s landmark Yellow Crane Tower batik style. manship at the Guizhou Provincial [email protected] reopens to the public on April 29. PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY