Hundreds of thousands of Chinese tourists flocked overseas, while others had to make do with a 1,200km carpool for New Year travel.
Chinese New Year is one of the largest human migrations on the planet. Every year, hundreds of millions of Chinese travel back to their hometowns, crammed into trains, buses and automobiles.
For some, the journey home is a long one. Hu Tianxiong, a 33 year old white-collar worker from Shenzhen, decided to drive back to his hometown in central China’s Hubei province – 1,200km away from his workplace. Fortunately, Hu carpooled with two travelling companions he met on a local website who helped cover the cost of the journey.
For others, the prospect of driving 1,200km is less appealing than holidaying somewhere hot and exotic. According to the Tourism Advisory Board of Thailand, an estimated 270,000 tourists from China celebrated New Year in the Southeast Asian country, spending a staggering 10bn baht ($333bn) during the six-day period. Even Thailand’s Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn visited China Town in Bangkok to join in the festivities, while the nation’s Prime Minister wished all a prosperous Year of the Snake.
Savvy hoteliers in Dubai also cashed in on the New Years festivities to cater for over 214,000 Chinese tourists. The city’s famous seven star hotel Burj Al-Arab offered seasonal visitors Chinese specialities, such as Fa Gao (Chinese-style cupcakes Nian Gao (New Year Cake) and the international favourite, Peking Duck.
The region’s largest airline, Emirates, has been steadily increasing flights to and from China and now operates 38 flights a week. Emirates chief executive, Tim Clark, commented: “We are keen on increasing our flight frequency and on spotting new destinations in the Middle Kingdom.”
For many, even before they had finished celebrating this New Year, plans were being made for where to celebrate the Year of the Horse in 12 months' time.