Flu fears fail to scare domestic travelers

By Cui Xiaohuo (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-05-02 08:38

China's tourist hotspots looked to have escaped any knock-on effect from the deadly flu outbreak, with visitor numbers holding steady on the first day of the May Day weekend.

Travel agents had feared the worst even before the spread of the newly renamed A(H1N1) influenza, with the industry also expected to be affected by both the global financial crisis and the State Council's decision last year to cut the holiday to three days from a week.

But national tour companies, including Beijing-based China International Travel Service (CITS) and China Youth Travel Service (CYTS), on Friday said the domestic market had fared well, despite the gloomy outlook.

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Thousands flocked to the country's major destinations, such as the capital's Bird's Nest stadium, Tian'anmen Square and Forbidden City, while most did not wear face masks.

Tourists said it was too early to worry about the outbreak. Wang Jinlin, who was one of 40 visitors to arrive in Beijing from Panjin, Liaoning province, said: "Everything has gone as planned. For us, the flu is still far away."

Millions of university students also traveled to their hometowns for a precious break before final exams. "We left even before the flu broke out," said Gao Yuxiao, who left her school in the capital to return to her native Qingdao in Shandong province.

But for casual travelers, like Luo Yi, of Nanjing, Jiangsu province, the danger of infection was not worth the risk. "I won't travel if I don't have to," he said.

The National Tourism Administration on Friday issued a further warning to Chinese planning overseas trips, urging those heading to the Netherlands or Switzerland, where flu cases have been confirmed, to take extra precautions.

Although bookings for foreign destinations such as Mexico and the United States were largely cancelled, tourists who made plans for domestic locations had stuck to them, said Zhang Shuo, marketing manager for CITS.

However, media in Hong Kong reported the shopping paradise expected a drop in mainland visitors for the May Day break.

The first suspected case of influenza A(H1N1) has been detected in Hong Kong, and police and health security personnel have shut down a hotel, local media reported Friday.

Authorities in Macao also predicted a similar reduction in tourists.

Since cutting the weeklong holiday to just three days, pre-booked trips for the Labor Day weekend fell almost 30 percent, said the holiday office of the National Tourism Administration.

"A prosperous holiday season needs both consumers' spending and time. This year's May Day holiday has neither of these," added Li Rongru, deputy general manager of the Yunnan branch of CYTS.