Aerial photo taken on April 7, 2020 shows the illuminated Yellow Crane Tower, or Huanghelou, a landmark of the city of Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province. Wuhan, the megacity in central China, started lifting outbound travel restrictions from April 8 after almost 11 weeks of lockdown to stem the spread of COVID-19. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)

Tourism revenue in Central China's Hubei - the province that was hit hardest by the COVID-19 epidemic in China - has surged during the Dragon Boat Festival, double that of the May Day holidays, official data showed Sunday.

During the three-day holiday - the first public holiday after the epidemic situation eased in the province - scenic areas in the province received 6.79 million visitors, while revenue reached 269 million yuan ($38 million) - a 102.5 percent increase compared with the May Day holidays, according to Hubei's provincial culture and tourism authority.  

The increasing tourism revenue also reflected the evident economic recovery in the province as more hotels and food delivery services see increases in business activities.

Zheng Heng, general manager of Yuexi Health Management Company, which runs six hotels in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei and once the epicenter of the virus in China, told the Global Times that during the holiday, the occupancy rate in the hotels reached 80 percent, with the majority of tourists being from Hubei. Revenue increased about 20 percent, which indicates that his hotel businesses are recovering.

Wang Wenyong, a food deliveryman, told the Global Times that he only received about 20 orders per day from the Tomb-Sweeping Day holiday in April to the May Day holidays, but since May, he could receive about double the number of orders.

Despite the increasing numbers, there is still a long way for the tourism sector in Hubei to go to reach normal levels. According to official data, visitor numbers at popular attractions and revenue during this year's Dragon Boat Festival are only 38.4 percent and 38.6 percent respectively of last year's.

Occupancy rates decreases 30 percent compared with one year ago, while hotel prices have also witnessed an almost 60 percent decrease, Zheng noted, adding "a double room was 458 yuan per night during the same period last year, but now it is only 168 yuan."

Wang, who could earn about 10,000 yuan per month last year, said that he can only make 6,500 to 7,000 yuan per month now.