Tourism operators in China are in high spirits because the market saw a good chance of a robust recovery during the Spring Festival holiday amid relaxed COVID-19 travel policies.

On Friday, the last day of the seven-day break, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism published an encouraging performance report of the tourism market. It said that domestic destinations and attractions received 308 million visits, up 23.1 percent year-on-year. The number is roughly 88.6 percent of that in 2019, the year before the pandemic hit.

Tourism-related revenue generated during the seven-day period was about 375.8 billion yuan, a year-on-year rise of 30 percent. The revenue was about 73 percent of that in 2019, the ministry said.

Domestic destinations with mild climate or a heavy atmosphere of celebration, such as the coastal city Sanya in Hainan province and Beijing, were popular choices among travelers.

Overseas travel saw a good start over the holiday. Online travel agency LY.com said that bookings for flight tickets to overseas destinations rose by 258 percent year-on-year on the platform. Those for inbound flights surged by 632 percent, it said.

According to a survey by the academy, about 18.2 percent of surveyed companies saw their holiday revenues reaching over 80 percent of the same period back in 2019. About 49 percent of the surveyed companies saw their holiday revenue reaching 60 percent to 80 percent of the figure in 2019.

The market needs a longer time to recover. So it is important for government bodies in fiscal, financial, social security and tourism policymaking sectors to maintain stable growth of the market and improve satisfaction of travelers, thereby boosting confidence for investment