Shi Ying won't be making the traditional pilgrimage back to Shanghai to celebrate the Lunar New Year holiday with her extended family. Instead, they're all going to Japan for shopping and sightseeing.
That new custom lets her family bypass the mobs, clogged roads and subways, lousy customer services - and boredom - that can mark holidays at home. During the past few celebrations, Shi and her relatives left China for Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and the US.
"The last thing my parents want for the Chinese New Year is a cheerless holiday with the three of us staying home in Shanghai," said Shi, 30, who works for a non-governmental organisation in Beijing. "Going overseas during the Spring Festival costs about the same as going to some domestic tourist spots."
The essence of China's seven-day holiday, also called Spring Festival, is morphing as rising incomes and an expanding network of international flights prompt more people to go abroad. Outbound travel for the holiday break is expected to top a record 6 million passengers, with airlines hauling near-full loads to Japan, South Korea and Southeast Asia.
"Chinese New Year is a major international peak for the Chinese airlines," said Steve Saxon, a Shanghai-based partner at consultant McKinsey & Co. "For many, this is one of the only two opportunities to take a long holiday during the year."
