Uptick in tourism during holiday signals rebound

The nation's tourism market saw a steady recovery during the Spring Festival holiday, pointing to a continued upturn after being hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic last year.

The recovery is remarkable given that many people were encouraged to stay put over the holiday, industry insiders said.

During the seven-day break, travelers made around 256 million trips to domestic destinations, a year-on-year rise of 15.7 percent from the same period in 2020 when the pandemic had just started, according to a statement from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism on Thursday. The trips were equal to some 75.3 percent of those during the holiday in 2019, the statement said.