China’s travel industry is eyeing a recovery in 2023 after the country dropped its interprovincial travel restrictions and international quarantine requirements, but hesitation and caution still remain in the short term.
Travel agents across China don’t expect demand to immediately surge following the lifting of pandemic-related travel restrictions, due to various factors such as the spread of the virus, the country’s exit policy for overseas travel and precautionary measures taken by other countries.
“Right now, travelers are in the panic period of reopening,” said Sun Yan, a travel agent based in Xiamen, a city in southeastern Fujian province. She said that while tourists have been discouraged from traveling in recent months due to concerns over COVID-19, the situation will improve once infections begin to ease.