(Yicai Global) May 10 -- New amusement park registrations rose more than three times in China in the first four months of this year as domestic tourism recovers from the coronavirus pandemic.

More than 9,700 new operators registered across the country in the four months ended April, according to figures from corporate database Qichacha. China has over 60,000 such companies.

The trend was apparent even before the pandemic curtailed overseas travel by Chinese tourists. Last year, registrations soared 82 percent to 18,300 after topping 10,000 for the first time the year before.

Based on visitor numbers, China's is the world’s biggest market for amusement parks, TF Securities said in a recent report, and the country has nearly 3,000 theme parks, of which almost 400 are large. They were a top destination over the recent Labor Day holiday, hosting 20 percent more guests during the five-day break compared with the same period in 2019. 

Northern Shandong province leads the pack, with more than 5,200 operators, according to Qichacha. Eastern Jiangsu province is No. 2 with over 5,000, followed by Guangdong province in the south.

Most of the companies are small operators as over 70 percent have less than CNY5 million (USD778,000) in registered capital. Those capitalized at over CNY10 million make up less than a fifth of the total. 

Theme parks in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Chengdu are the most popular and visitors favor well-known brand names such as Shanghai Disneyland, Chimelong Paradise, Fantawild Adventure, and Sunac Land.

Editor: Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi