Starting from May 16, the fuel surcharge for domestic air routes in China will once again be increased. The news of the adjustment has led to a noticeable surge in flight bookings for the Dragon Boat Festival and summer vacations, a trend that mainland Chinese media is calling the “ticket hoarding frenzy.”
Effective from midnight on May 16, the fuel surcharge for domestic air routes will be raised once more: for segments of 800 kilometers or less, the surcharge will increase from 60 yuan to 90 yuan, while for segments over 800 kilometers, it will rise from 120 yuan to 170 yuan.
Previously, the fuel surcharge for domestic air routes was adjusted on April 5; this latest increase marks another price hike since the spring of this year.
According to a report by “21st Century Economic News” on May 14, following the announcement of the fuel surcharge increase, flight bookings have immediately spiked. Data from the online travel platform “Qunar Travel” shows that on May 12, the number of flight bookings during the Dragon Boat Festival (June 19-21) increased by 84% compared to the previous day, while bookings for flights during the summer period from July to August saw a 58% increase.
The report also cited data from Tongcheng Travel, stating that prior to the recent round of fuel surcharge adjustments, the proportion of tickets booked in advance for the May Day holiday had increased compared to the same period last year.
At the same time, there has been a significant increase in searches for flights and hotels related to the summer season, with some users securing their summer flight tickets in advance.
In terms of popular destinations, as of the 13th, popular flight destinations for the Dragon Boat Festival include Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Urumqi, Hangzhou, Kunming, Chongqing, and Dalian; while popular destinations for the summer season include Shanghai, Urumqi, Kunming, Lanzhou, Beijing, Chengdu, Haikou, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Sanya.
“First Financial” stated on May 13 that after the May Day holiday, some flight ticket prices have fallen, leading many passengers to choose to purchase tickets in advance due to the combination of the fuel surcharge increase news and low-season discounted airfares.