China Crowds

China’s Tourist Spots Are Flooded With Crowds After They Reopened

Concerns over another wave of the outbreak rise.
by | April 07, 2020


Amid the global pandemic due to the coronavirus outbreak that began in Wuhan, China’s tourist spots have reopened for the public last weekend, welcoming a flood of people eager for the outdoors.

 

Qingming Festival 2020

April 4 is the first day of this year’s Qingming Festival, where people sweep the tombs of their ancestors to pay respects. The Chinese are given three days to celebrate this festival, so they’re essentially on a long weekend, which usually makes this holiday a great opportunity to travel. And it seems Chinese citizens are taking advantage of this holiday right after the long quarantine period and strict lockdown measures.

 

Tourist spots flooded with crowds

In China’s Anhui province, Huangshan Mountain waived its 190 yuan (nearly PHP 1400) entrance fee, thus allowing thousands of people to enter without restrictions. The tourist spot actually reached their daily limit of 20,000 entries as early as 7:48 AM, according to Global Times’ report.

In Zhejiang province, tourists are flocking to a Hangzhou garden to celebrate the festival. Shanghai’s Bund waterfront saw its usual crowd of tourists and shoppers come back after weeks away, while the capital Beijing saw an influx of people filling public parks.

While many people are still wearing masks, there are some that eventually took them off, thereby increasing the risk of transmission of the virus.

 

Concern over a second wave of the coronavirus outbreak

While reports say that the number of new infections in China has been falling, people have expressed their concerns about the high risks of transmitting the coronavirus in such crowded places. “The COVID-19 pandemic has only just stabilized in China, do you want it to break out again?” a Weibo user asked.

Another Weibo user said that the free entrance policies should have been discouraged because “the pandemic is not over yet.”

Twitter users all over the world are expressing their worry about another spike in the number of cases in China, but despite establishments reporting that precautions are being taken, many remain anxious. And maybe rightfully so.

 

What do you think of this surge in China’s tourism?

Meryl finds joy in music, movies, museums, and making her way around the world.

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