Hubei’s coronavirus cases rise 10-fold after change in diagnostic criteria
13 Feb 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on Yunnan’s tourism industry. The number of tourists has sharply declined, and tourism-related businesses are facing operational difficulties. Numerous travel agencies, hotels, and businesses around scenic areas have suspended operations or closed down. The upstream and downstream sectors of the industry chain, such as transportation, shopping, and entertainment, have also been severely affected, with inbound and outbound tourism nearly coming to a standstill. However, the pandemic has also accelerated the transformation of Yunnan’s tourism industry, promoting the advancement of smart tourism.
Negative Impacts
Sharp Decline in Tourist Numbers and Revenue
Overall Decline: In 2020, under the severe impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Yunnan Province (云南) is expected to receive over 530 million domestic and international tourists throughout the year, recovering about 65% compared to the previous year. The total tourism revenue is projected to reach 678 billion yuan, recovering about 60% compared to the previous year.
Localized Impact: After the outbreak of the Ruili (瑞丽) pandemic in 2021, the tourism-related industries in Xishuangbanna (西双版纳) were significantly affected. The number of team tours and scenic area visits decreased, and tourism industry revenue dropped by nearly 30%.
Operational Difficulties for Tourism Enterprises
Closures and Suspensions: A large number of tourism enterprises, such as travel agencies, hotels, and restaurants and retail shops around scenic areas, faced operational difficulties due to pandemic control measures and a sharp decline in tourist numbers. Many small businesses and individual entrepreneurs could not withstand the long-term operational pressure and had to suspend operations or even close down.
Financial Pressure: With a sharp decline in revenue but ongoing operational costs, companies faced tight cash flows, struggling to pay rent, employee salaries, loan principal, and interest. Some companies found it difficult to recover quickly even after the pandemic eased.
Setbacks in the Upstream and Downstream Industry Chain
Transportation: Passenger traffic related to tourism, including aviation, railways, and highways, dropped significantly. Tourist buses were idle, airlines reduced flights, and railway departments’ tourist train services were also greatly affected.
Shopping: Tourist shopping venues saw a significant drop in foot traffic. Sales of tourism goods such as jewelry, jade, and specialty handicrafts plummeted, leading to the closure of many tourist shopping stores.
Entertainment: Tourist performance venues, such as “Impression Lijiang” (印象丽江), faced restrictions on audience numbers or were unable to perform during the pandemic. Performers faced reduced income or even unemployment, and the development of related industries was hindered.
Stagnation in Inbound and Outbound Tourism
Inbound Tourism: International travel restrictions and pandemic control requirements made it difficult for foreign tourists to enter Yunnan (云南). The rich tourism resources of Yunnan could not attract international tourists, and the inbound tourism market was essentially at a standstill.
Outbound Tourism: Outbound tourism for Yunnan residents was also strictly restricted, suppressing the demand for outbound travel and severely impacting travel agencies and other businesses engaged in outbound tourism.
Positive Impacts
Accelerated Industry Transformation
The pandemic has prompted Yunnan’s tourism industry to accelerate its transformation and upgrading, shifting from traditional sightseeing to diversified formats such as leisure vacations, residential tourism, cultural exploration, and wellness tourism. This has given rise to new products and experiences such as high-end mountain hotels, wellness resorts, outdoor sports, and self-driving camping.
Promotion of Smart Tourism Development
To reduce human contact and improve tourism service efficiency, smart tourism platforms like “One Mobile Phone Travels Yunnan” (一部手机游云南) have been more widely applied and promoted. Smart tour guides, smart restrooms, and facial recognition entry systems have become more prevalent in scenic areas.
Improved Industry Governance
During the pandemic, the government strengthened the supervision and governance of the tourism market, further standardizing market order and improving the tourism complaint handling mechanism. This has created a better environment for the long-term development of the tourism industry.
Growth in Local Tourism
Under the normalization of pandemic prevention, local and regional tourism markets such as “Yunnan People Traveling Yunnan” (云南人游云南) have seen some development. Residents have gained more understanding and experience of local tourism resources, prompting tourism enterprises to pay more attention to local market demands and develop tourism products and routes suitable for local tourists.
Summary
Under the impact of the pandemic, Yunnan’s tourism industry has suffered a severe blow. The number of tourists has sharply declined, with the number of visitors and revenue in 2020-2021 far below that of 2019. Many tourism enterprises faced operational difficulties, and some even went bankrupt. The upstream and downstream industry chains, such as transportation, shopping, and entertainment, were also severely affected, with inbound and outbound tourism nearly coming to a halt. However, the pandemic has also forced the industry to transform, accelerating the development of smart tourism and promoting the rise of local tourism.
In the latest effort to use big data to help contain the coronavirus outbreak, a province in southwestern China is asking residents to scan a code when they enter public places, sparking debate over whether the measure is effective.
Starting Wednesday, authorities in Yunnan province require all residents to scan the code through a WeChat mini-program when they enter and leave all public places to trace those who have had close contact with anybody confirmed or suspected to have been infected.
The move has sparked criticism on social media as to the effectiveness of such a screening process, especially since not everyone owns a smartphone with the required app. A Weibo post by state media people.cn seeking public opinion on the plan received a mixed response, with some indicating support but many others commenting “I disagree.”
“There are still many elderly people who do not use smartphones,” said one Weibo user. “Once implemented, there will no doubt be congestion and queues in public places [to scan the code]. The risk of infection will be higher,” said another.
The latest move in Yunnan province is in line with the country’s efforts to contain the outbreak. Earlier this week China’s State Council backed the launch of a “close contact detector” platform with a similar purpose, based on information gathered from public transport records, including trains and flights.
The coronavirus, which is now officially called Covid-19, has spread to at least 24 countries, sickening more than 60,000 people worldwide. There have been more than 48,000 confirmed coronavirus cases in China’s Hubei province resulting in more than 1,300 deaths, although Yunnan province had only recorded 155 infections, according to figures reported on Thursday.
The mini-program, whose name roughly translates as “Fight the coronavirus in Yunnan”, requires users to enter their phone number and receive a verification code to register. After that, they scan the “in” and “out” code when visiting public places such as airports, railway stations, subways, bus terminals, shopping malls, supermarkets, residential areas, as well as hospitals and pharmacies.
The mini-program does not ask users to enter their name and national identity numbers.
Some residents have indicated support for the Yunnan government’s effort to trace people’s movements as a way to limit the spread of the virus. “We’ve been very cooperative because we really want to get this outbreak under control,” a Yunnan resident surnamed Gao, who declined to give her full name, told the Post.
In the city of Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang province, authorities have implemented a “health code” which asks residents to use a web-based program to report their health status when returning home. Only those with a “green” code can enter the city, while those with “red” must undergo a 14 day quarantine and those with a “yellow” code need seven days of quarantine.
On Thursday, Zhejiang reported 1,145 confirmed coronavirus cases.
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Yunnan Travel – How COVID-19 pandemic affect Yunnan tourism
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on Yunnan’s tourism industry. The number of tourists has sharply declined, and tourism-related businesses are facing operational difficulties. Numerous travel agencies,...
Yunnan province plan to contain coronavirus by tracking residents in public places comes under question
In the latest effort to use big data to help contain the coronavirus outbreak, a province in southwestern China is asking residents to scan a code when they enter...
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