Passengers walk out of Haikou Meilan International Airport on December 9, 2022. Photo: VCG

Chinese travel agencies and online travel companies will resume pilot outbound group tours to a total of 20 countries starting from February 6, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism announced on Friday.

Analysts noted that the pilot program for resumption of the outbound group tours is a milestone for China after nearly three years of suspension and represents the nation's boosted confidence in its implementation of pandemic prevention measures after it has optimized and entered a new phase of COVID responses.

Companies can release and launch products, promotions and other preparation work starting on Friday, per the notice from the ministry. The 20 destinations include Southeast Asian nations like Thailand and Indonesia. South Africa, Russia, New Zealand and Argentina are also listed destinations for the pilot group tours.

The resumption of outbound group tours will inject new momentum into market expectations and confidence in China's domestic travel as well, which will also drive the recovery and development of consumption and relevant sectors, Zhang Yi, CEO of iiMedia Research Institute, told the Global Times on Friday

Zhang added that more international communication and exchanges are expected following the resumption of international tours, and Chinese tourists can further contribute to the global recovery of tourism and consumption.

The ministry set out four major tasks, requiring relevant agencies to strengthen responsibility, implement pandemic prevention plans, regulate business operations and enhance supervision and enforcement.

The notice stressed that the pilot program to resume outbound group tours are significant for promoting the resumption of tourism development.

A Thai official gives a garland to Chinese tourists as they arrive at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Samut Prakarn province, Thailand, on January 9, 2023. Photo: VCG

Local authorities should guide travel agencies and strictly implement relevant mechanisms and standards for operating group tours, while cooperating with qualified overseas partners, optimizing travel products and ensuring the safety of tourists.

In addition, the notice vowed to strengthen supervision of business operations in a bid to effectively maintain the order of the tourism market. Travel groups should report the information of each tour on corresponding platforms and should not arrange tours against the required time schedule or beyond the listed destinations. It is also important for local authorities to enhance the supervision of illegal operations such as tours with "unreasonably low prices."

The timing of the change will allow tours to avoid the travel peak during the Spring Festival, while the listed destinations are more accessible and convenient for Chinese travelers, Zhou Weihong, deputy general manager of China Spring Tour, told the Global Times on Friday, noting she remains confident in the recovery of the aviation and tourism industries.

Multiple online travel agencies have seen a strong recovery in outbound travel through booming online bookings. For instance, bookings for outbound travel products for 33 countries and regions during Spring Festival doubled on Fliggy, Alibaba's travel-services platform, with bookings for Thailand, Maldives and New Zealand increasing more than 10 times year-on-year, stcn.com reported.

A number of countries warmly welcomed Chinese tourists after cross-border travel rebounded. The Maldives conducted a vibrant ceremony on Wednesday for the first Chinese tourists to visit since 2020. In Thailand, the deputy prime minister and other government officials greeted passengers from China at the airport and gave them health bags and garlands.

Boosted by the surging travel demand for the upcoming Spring Festival, relevant stock sectors including the tourism and catering sectors closed with a significant rise on the last trading day before the Chinese New Year.

Global Times