Tourism sector seeks to rebound after lost peak season

The tourism industry is trying to protect its hard-earned recovery after a new wave of COVID-19 hit the sector's business during the summer travel season, traditionally a period of peak demand.

Since the latest wave of the epidemic started in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, and Zhangjiajie, Hunan province, last month, travel restrictions for group tours have been phased in by local governments.

Yu Xiaofeng, the operator of a homestay near Beijing Daxing International Airport, said his business has fallen due to tightened policies on homestay management and epidemic prevention.

"The 13 suites we run had always been fully booked because we are located near the airport, but the occupancy rate fell to around 60 and 70 percent after the new wave of the epidemic," he said.

"Now business is suspended, and I'm not sure if the homestay can reopen or not."

Yu said he is confident about the efficacy of epidemic control measures, and hopes the government will help homestay businesses resume operation eventually.

"The epidemic may bring a financial loss for one or two months, but it's not a very big problem if we can continue the business when the new wave of infection finishes," he said. "I do believe in the government's capacity to control the epidemic, and I hope that we operators can jointly find some solutions with the government to minimize losses rather than just closing down businesses."

Wang Xiaoqian, marketing director for Xband's family-focused homestay business, said the epidemic dealt a hard blow to the company's business over the summer.

"Our family-focused homestays have been in short supply during previous summers, but many parents canceled their reservations," she said.

Wei Changren, general manager of Ctcnn.com, a consultancy for online tourism, said the rough time for tourism companies will last at least through August as children and their parents are being encouraged not to travel, and the new school semester is due to start early next month.

"The National Day holiday in October may partly cover the summer loss," he said, but added that the tightening of control measures for the upcoming Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics is another challenge to the recovery of winter tourism for northern provinces.

Despite lingering uncertainties, tourism companies are still seeking ways out of the predicament and governments at all levels are helping to restore the market.

For example, Xband said it will develop short-distance tours. "We believe that short trips to the outskirts of cities have potential market value," Wang said.

Last week, the Shandong Provincial Culture and Tourism Bureau said that all areas in the province now have low risk of infection and travel agencies have been allowed to resume interprovincial tours and reservation services for air tickets and hotels since Thursday.

Hubei province reopened 18 A-rated tourism attractions on Aug 16 that had been shut due to the new wave of the epidemic, taking the number of attractions operating in the province to 105.