Splurging is surging

In the first half of 2019, the number of travel notes on Mafengwo that mentioned "Michelin "increased by 64 percent over the same period of 2018, and many were about Michelin-starred restaurants in Japan.

Meanwhile, "coffee" and "milk tea" are two buzzwords in the website's travel notes of the first half of 2019. Shanghai, Beijing, Yunnan province's Lijiang, Tokyo, Vietnam's Nha Trang and Seoul were favorite places to visit cafes.

Zhang Chuchen prefers starred hotels with good locations and swimming pools, and unique listings on the home-sharing platform, Airbnb.

The 26-year-old office worker from Beijing also stays in hostels to make friends with other young independent travelers from around the world. She buys cosmetics, skin-care products, local snacks and souvenirs from local museums.