Chinese families are booking overseas summer holidays earlier than usual this year as cheaper international airfares, expanding visual-free access and recovering flight capacity make outbound travel more affordable, online travel platform Qunar said on Monday.
Bookings for outbound trips during the upcoming summer holiday in July and August have risen by more than 30 percent year-on-year, with family trips accounting for about 40 percent of all bookings, according to data from the travel platform.
The trend reflects a broader recovery in China's outbound tourism market and growing demand from households seeking cheaper alternatives to domestic peak-season travel.
For departures in mid-July from Beijing, one-way flights to domestic tourist hotspots generally cost more than 1,000 yuan ($139), while flights to Yining, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, exceeded 3,000 yuan.
By comparison, direct flights from Beijing to Seoul in South Korea were priced at around 800 yuan, including taxes, while fares to Bangkok in Thailand and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia were slightly above 1,000 yuan. Direct flights to Tashkent in Uzbekistan were available for less than 1,500 yuan.
