As the novel coronavirus epidemic situation improves, tourism, one of the hardest-hit industries during the outbreak, is bouncing back.

According to a report on China's tourism market during the Dragon Boat Festival released by popular online travel agency Ctrip.com, during the three-day festival on June 25-27, despite some new coronavirus cases in Beijing and heavy rains in some cities, the number of tourists, domestic tourism revenue and the number of trips all realized growth compared with the previous month.

With the virus under control in China and most of the new cases being imported ones, many Chinese have started to travel domestically as a way to relax, maintaining safety measures such as having their temperature taken and wearing masks.

The summer vacation is usually a peak season for tourism, so various scenic spots hope to attract more tourists this time and make up the losses. Many have taken measures to attract more visitors. For instance, Mount Wutai, a sacred Buddhist destination in Shanxi Province, north China, has temporarily exempted the entrance fee; Kunming, capital city of Yunnan Province in the southwest, has issued tourism vouchers; and many tourism companies have combined online and offline services.

The capital market has also responded positively to the recovery of the tourism industry, with the stocks of many listed tourism enterprises rising.

Recovery of the industry underscores China's success in coronavirus prevention and control, and that production and life in China is returning to normal. The Chinese tourism industry is a mature one with sound endogenous growth impetus. The current performance shows it is capable of offsetting the negative impacts caused by the coronavirus epidemic.

However, not all negative impacts on the tourism industry are receding. It is mainly domestic tourism that has recovered, while inbound and outbound tourism are still at a standstill due to the ineffective virus control outside China.

In addition, the three-month hiatus has caused enormous damage even to the domestic industry, which is unlikely to recover to last year's level by the end of 2020. Most tourism businesses are still facing huge financial pressure.

On the other hand, tourism businesses can take this time to upgrade, acquire new facilities and train their staff so that they can provide higher quality services in the future. Rather than the impacts of the coronavirus, it is high-quality travel experience that will determine the survival of the tourism industry.

(Printed Edition Title: A Time to Recharge)