Chinese tourists pose for photos with staff at Dubai International Airport in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, Feb. 6, 2023.(Photo: Xinhua)

While some Chinese travelers from the first batch of outbound group tours returned home with fond memories after departing on February 6, domestic travel institutions are busy preparing for the five-day May Day holidays, which start on April 29. 

"The experience for the first tour groups to Thailand was great, and even better than my expectations," Zhou Weihong, a deputy general manager of Shanghai Spring Tour, said. 

Zhou told the Global Times on Monday that what people spend in Thailand, especially for seafood and spas, is worthwhile as the services and products are high quality and reasonably priced.

Xu Xiaolei, marketing manager at China's CYTS Tours Holding Co, noted that clients' responses were beyond expectations and international cooperation in the industry remained stable. 

Most travelers in the first batch of outbound group tours were those with flexible schedules, such as retirees or freelancers, and the trips were mainly to Southeast Asian countries, Zhang Yi, CEO of iiMedia Research Institute, told the Global Times. 

Amid rising enthusiasm, many people are already planning international trips for the upcoming May Day holidays.

A representative from an online travel agency told the Global Times that Thailand, Bali in Indonesia, Egypt, New Zealand and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates are the major destinations for the five-day holidays, and prices have been rising.

For instance, a six-day trip to Thailand usually costs around 4,000 yuan ($586) per person, which will rise to 6,000 yuan during the holidays. 

Zhou noted that Thailand remains a significant destination among Chinese outbound travelers. 

As of February 2, Thailand had welcomed nearly 100,000 Chinese tourists. With the resumption of Chinese flights to Thailand, Airports of Thailand expects about 7 to 10 million Chinese tourists to land at Bangkok's airports in 2023, Lvmama, a domestic online travel agency, told the Global Times.

Industry insiders expect another boom in outbound travel during the holidays, and companies are preparing. 

Xu said that the industry is getting more confidence due to growing demand for the May Day holidays, based on positive feedback from the first batch of outbound group tours. "The number of tourists for CYTS Tours in the coming two to three weeks will likely increase by seven to 10 times compared with the first week starting on February 6."

Zhang expected more young and working tourists to catch up on outbound travel during the May Day holidays, while their destinations will be those offering safety and those that are friendly to Chinese travelers with a rich history or with great natural beauty.

The May Days holidays will see an explosion in overseas travel by Chinese tourists. "Our company has started to prepare products for the holidays and summer vacations, including expanding the diversity of products, adding staff and launching more online and on-site promotions," Wang He, CEO of Fly Elephant, told the Global Times on Monday. 

Major Chinese airlines are managing to restore international routes. China Eastern Airlines expects to resume 60 international and regional routes with 410 flights, while Hainan Airlines will resume flights from Haikou in South China's Hainan Province to Bangkok in Thailand, per statements sent to the Global Times by the airlines. 

Authorities in various countries hope to attract more Chinese tourists. For instance, Cambodian officials are accelerating the "China Ready Authentication System" and Chinese tourists can use the yuan in different formats for local payments, China.com.cn reported.