Shanghai Disney theme park to reopen on May 11
>> Disney said it will begin a phased reopening of its Shanghai theme park next week, a move that comes at the same time the company reported significant losses due to the closure of its parks worldwide. The company's largest international park is slated to reopen under "enhanced safety measures" for the first time in more than three months on May 11. More than 11 million people visited Disney's Shanghai park in 2018, according to an estimate by AECOM.
China reports 115 million domestic tourists in a five-day holiday
>> China recorded 115 million domestic tourists for the Labor Day holiday from May 1-5, generating a domestic travel revenue of RMB 47.56 billion (USD 5.7 billion), according to data from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Data from the Ministry of Transport show that China's railways carried 22.89 million passengers from April 30 to May 3, while 2.53 million air passengers were recorded during the time.
Deutsche Hospitality accounts for 25% of Huazhu's annual revenues
>> Germany-based hotel group Deutsche Hospitality reported annual revenue of EUR 484 million (RMB 3,783 million) last year, making up 25.2% of Huazhu's consolidated revenues for the year. The Chinese hotelier completed the acquisition of Deutsche Hospitality on January 2, 2020. Huazhu scheduled to issue a shareholder loan of € 20 million to Deutsche Hospitality and issued a Letter of Guarantee to ensure the liquidity of Deutsche Hospitality to meet all its obligations for the next twelve months.
TUI restarts offering trips and flights within China
>> TUI’s Chinese unit will restart its travel business, offering trips and flights within the country to local customers. The business is resuming after the government lifted a three-month sales ban, and operations will gradually be expanded amid a backlog of demand by Chinese customers, Chief Executive Officer Fritz Joussen said. TUI’s online traffic is at 90% of last year’s level, signaling there’s high demand.
Indonesian tourism buckles as Chinese tourists stop coming
>> Foreign tourist arrivals plummeted in Indonesia in March as the country's tourism industry started feeling the pinch of the coronavirus crisis. Massive drop in tourist arrivals from China, which accounted for 13% of total foreign visitor arrivals last year, would lose Indonesia up to USD 2.8 billion in revenue.
WeChat is taking museums to cloud
>> WeChat has teamed up with 11 museums in the U.S. to create an innovative "Museum in the Cloud" experience, allowing would-be museum-goers to digitally visit participating museums from their homes. The partnership is wholeheartedly supported by the American Alliance of Museums (AAM).
TravelSky signs long term deal with Australia's Aeronology
>> Australian travel tech firm Aeronology said it had sealed a global API/GDS distribution relationship with TravelSky, China’s largest airline GDS. Travel agents who have no direct access to TravelSky can use Aeronology’s connection to TravelSky to book all Chinese airlines into and out of China.
China Eastern plans to resume 70%-80% of flights by June
>> China Eastern Airlines, the country’s second-largest domestic carrier, plans to resume 70% to 80% of flights by the end of June and make further increases through August. The domestic market is seeing over 6,000 daily flights from all airlines, implying a recovery of around half, according to data provider Airsavvi.
United Airlines hopes to resume four flights to three Chinese cities
>> United Airlines wants to make a strong return to China in June and will “pencil in” a relaunch of passenger service with four flights to three cities – Beijing, Chengdu, and Shanghai. United did not specify how many times a week it would fly to China, but its plan is more ambitious than China presently allows. China has implemented the so-called “Five One” rule for international passenger flights. That limits one airline to serving one country from one Chinese city to one foreign city with no more than one flight a week.
