(Yicai) Feb. 12 -- Hotel prices in small Chinese cities, such as Shantou and Jieyang, for bookings over the Chinese New Year holiday have surged, mainly thanks to the rising popularity of cultural tourism.

In Shantou, hotel prices climbed four- to 20-fold during the Chinese New Year holiday, Yicai learned from online travel platforms, such as Trip.Com. For example, the price of a regular room at Shantou Small Park Hotel is usually CNY119 (USD17) per night, but during the Chinese New Year holiday, it exceeded CNY1,400 (USD203). On Feb. 19, the price reached a peak of CNY2,450.

The Chinese New Year holiday, also known as Spring Festival, will kick off on Feb. 14 and last for a record of nine days this year. As the holiday starts later in the year than usual, weather conditions are more suitable for traveling, resulting in an overall increase in tourism activities.

The top 10 Chinese domestic travel destinations are all small southern cities, according to data from Trip.Com. Shantou ranks first with a 186 percent increase in bookings from a year earlier, followed by Jieyang with 162 percent and Chaozhou with 135 percent.

“Places like Shantou, Jieyang, and Chaozhou have rich local culture and strong festive atmosphere, so they attract many visitors from large cities who are eager to experience unique cultural activities during the Spring Festival holiday,” said Wei Changren, founder of travel industry analysis company Ctcnn.Com. “The influx of tourists automatically leads to an increase in hotel prices.”

There are many cultural activities in the Chaoshan area, according to a resident. In addition to the Yingge dance, an intangible cultural heritage, there are other activities related to solar terms and the Lunar New Year, all of which have a vibrant atmosphere and a sense of ceremony. These activities are unique to Chaoshan and cannot be found elsewhere, which makes them very appealing.

Moreover, the concept of family is very strong among Chaoshan people, so migrant workers from the city all return home for the Chinese New Year, and some choose to stay in hotels, contributing to the surge in local hotel prices, the resident noted.

Traditional tropical destinations, such as Sanya, Jinghong, and Haikou, saw bookings jump 112 percent, 109 percent, and 98 percent, respectively, for this year’s Spring Festival, while cities in southern Fujian province, including Fuzhou, Quanzhou, and Xiamen, reported booking increases of 80 percent to 90 percent, Trip.Com data also showed.

The unique folk customs of the Temple Fair parade in Quanzhou have led to an 80 percent increase in local hotel bookings, with reservation volumes ranking among the top 15 nationwide. In Huangshan, Anhui province, where visitors can enjoy fish lanterns and climb mountains for blessings, the hotel price growth rate has reached 1.5 times.

On the contrary, hotels in Shanghai and other first-tier cities have seen prices drop during the Chinese New Year holiday. For example, a regular room at the Shanghai Marriott Hotel Parkview usually costs around CNY1,400 per night, but during the Spring Festival, the price has been halved to about CNY700.

Editor: Futura Costaglione