SANYA, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) -- Beneath a huge rock inscribed with the Chinese character "Tianya," an iconic attraction in China's tropical coastal city of Sanya, flocks of tourists have been spotted taking turns to "check in" and take photos during the ongoing National Day holiday.
Since June 1 this year, this attraction has been open to tourists for free. The popular tourist destination welcomed 16,000 tourists on Oct. 1, hitting a record high.
Sanya has seen a tourism boom during the "super golden week."
Wu Xue, a tourist from east China's Shandong Province, chartered a sightseeing vehicle to tour the city along with eight companions. "The scenery here is so beautiful that there is no need for filters to take photos, and children like playing on the beach here, and are even unwilling to leave," she said.
He Yan, deputy marketing director of Sanya Tianya Haijiao, said this year's National Day holiday has witnessed a significant tourist flow not only from other provinces, but also involving an increasing number of local residents.
He said that new tourism products have been introduced since the scenic spot opted to allow free entry, adding that diversified products and high-quality services are currently the key for scenic spots.
Wei Wanting, a tourist from south China's Guangdong Province, enjoyed the sea view on the top of the mountain while tasting coffee with her family at the Luhuitou scenic spot. It is the first time she is traveling in Hainan, and the family opted for a road trip.
"We took the sightseeing vehicle and fed the deer. The scenery on the top of the mountain is beautiful, and we will go down after watching the sunset," she said.
In addition to major scenic spots, the duty-free shops in Sanya are also benefiting from the tourism boom.
Nicolas Charbonnier, a tourist from Switzerland, and his wife purchased some skincare products in the duty-free city. Hainan is the second stop on their first trip to China, following Beijing, and they plan to stay in Hainan for two weeks.
"Sanya is really amazing. We love the sea and beach, and we also enjoy shopping in the huge duty-free shop," he said.
The hotel here is good with a reasonable price, and we will recommend more friends to come to Hainan and Sanya, Charbonnier continued.
Since the beginning of this year, Sanya has adopted measures to attract domestic and foreign tourists and improve services, including tourism promotion, issuing consumption vouchers, and offering tourists free admission to scenic spots, and the recovery of tourism consumption in this area has accelerated.
Statistics from Sanya Phoenix International Airport showed that, during the Mid-Autumn Festival and the National Day holiday, the airport would experience a peak in travel, with an estimated 3,008 flights to be operated and 464,000 passengers transported. The daily flight operations and passenger throughput are projected to increase by 20.1 percent and 6.8 percent, respectively, compared with the same period in 2019. ■
