Tourists watch birds at Laohutan scenic area in Dalian, northeast China’s Liaoning Province, April 16, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua]
The tourism sector will continue to grow in the first half of this year, after a prosperous first three months, experts said.
A report released recently by the China Tourism Academy said that in the first quarter of the year the tourism economy had recovered to roughly the level seen at the start of 2019 — before COVID-19 hit — following three quarters of growth. Tourism industry operators expressed growing confidence and people felt a stronger desire for travel in the first quarter.
The report said domestic tourism and related consumption rose 20 percent in the first quarter, with inbound and outbound visits averaging around 20 million a month.
“The tourism economy saw a good opening and stable operation in the first quarter, and the market has stepped into a period of new development,” Ma Yiliang, the academy’s chief statistician, said at a recent meeting in…