On September 26, the trending topic “Bought tickets for the National Day holiday and dare not check the prices again” surged on Weibo. Many netizens complained that they were afraid the ticket prices would rise exorbitantly, so they bought tickets early, only to find out that the prices had plummeted, almost halving, lamenting that they bought too early.
With the National Day holiday approaching, many people have noticed a crazy drop in ticket prices. One netizen had booked round-trip tickets from Chengdu to Yining for his family a month in advance for 4600 yuan, only to see a 60% decrease in prices in less than a month.
Other netizens in the comments section also expressed their frustrations: “I am one of those who regret it! Haven’t even left yet and lost 2000 yuan.” “It’s true, in the past, a trip from Tianjin to Xinjiang cost one or two thousand, but this time back home only cost 600 yuan, I was shocked.” “Bought a ticket in early September for over a thousand to fly to Guangzhou today, but last night saw it was only 500 yuan.”
“I’m so mad, already lost 700 yuan before even leaving, so frustrating.” “I lost 2400 yuan, who can I vent to, can anyone help?” “Beijing to Chengdu, the price for one person dropped by 1000 yuan, the whole family is speechless, already lodged a complaint.”
Some also mentioned: “I booked a flight to Xiamen, the most expensive was 3400 yuan, then I bought a ticket to Quanzhou for 1700 yuan, yesterday it was 1100 yuan. I promptly canceled and rebooked.” “Worried about ticket price hikes for the National Day holiday so bought tickets half a month early for 2700 yuan. Yesterday saw it drop to 1700 yuan. Quickly canceled, rebought, deducted 400 yuan for the handling fee, and still earned back 600 yuan.”
According to Taiwan Strait Network, several airlines have reported significant drops in ticket prices for many routes departing from Fuzhou during the upcoming National Day holiday compared to half a month ago. Some flights have seen price drops ranging from 40% to 70%.
For example, the ticket price from Fuzhou to Tianjin, which had an average price of 840 yuan recently, dropped to 400 yuan for October 1st departures, a 52% decrease. And the ticket price from Fuzhou to Shanghai, with an average price of 768 yuan recently, dropped to 420 yuan for October 1st departures, marking a 45% decrease.
Furthermore, according to the Daily Economic News, many popular cities like Shanghai, Hangzhou, Xiamen, and Guangzhou have also experienced varying degrees of price drops for outbound flights during the National Day holiday. Flight steward data shows that the average ticket price for domestic economy cabins during the National Day holiday has dropped by 21% compared to the same period last year.
At the same time, the demand for international flights remains high. The top ten cities with the highest ticket booking volumes are Hong Kong, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Seoul, Osaka, Tokyo, Singapore, Bali, Phuket, and Macau. For instance, the lowest direct flight fare from Shanghai to Tokyo on October 1st is 3182 yuan, an increase of 1751 yuan.
In response to this, some netizens suggest: “Buy domestic flights close to the date, and international flights early to get suitable prices.”