China: Flight bookings are skyrocketing

China's decision to finally abolish the quarantine obligation has boosted flight bookings, according to the latest data from the analysis company Forward Keys.

On December 7 last year, Chinese authorities announced that a negative PCR test would no longer be required for inter-provincial air travel. Domestic flight bookings immediately jumped 56 percent from the previous week and 69 percent the following week. 

On December 26, China lifted all Covid-related restrictions on domestic flights, and bookings skyrocketed again, reaching 50 percent of 2019 levels in the final week of the year Chinese Lunar New Year is down 3 percent from pre-pandemic levels and 2023 percent from last year, with the most popular destinations being Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Kunming, Sanya, Shenzhen, Haikou, Guangzhou and Chongqing. Before the announcement, they were 71 percent behind 8.