China's Labor Day Holiday Sees International Flight Cancellations Double Amid Soaring Fuel Prices

Decline in Southeast Asian Routes Despite Peak Travel Season
International Instability, Including Middle East Conflict, Cited as Key Factor

Although the Labor Day holiday (May 1–5), China's peak tourism season, has begun, the impact of the Iran war is still being felt, with the number of international flight cancellations doubling compared to last year, according to reports from Hong Kong's Ming Pao and other Greater China media outlets on May 2.

The airport bustling with passengers. Photo by Getty Images Korea

According to Hangban Guanzha, a Chinese flight information provider, a total of 85,285 flights are scheduled nationwide during this year's Labor Day holiday, up 5.25% from the previous year. Of these, 9,827 are international flights, and 785 of them have been canceled. The international flight cancellation rate rose to 7.4% this year from 3.6% last year, more than double. In particular, the cancellation rate for international flights operated by Chinese airlines reached 10.7%.

The canceled international flights are concentrated on routes to the Middle East, East Asia, the Pacific, and Southeast Asia. Popular routes such as Xi'an–Phuket, Chongqing–Phuket, and Yantai–Bangkok were successively canceled last month, and low-cost carriers AirAsia X and Thai AirAsia also suspended services on the Shanghai and Xi'an routes.

Ming Pao reported that instead of issuing official large-scale suspension announcements, Chinese airlines are reducing the scale of Southeast Asian routes during the holiday by means such as "system adjustments" or "offline notifications." The Chinese travel platform Sohu Travel, citing industry analysis, explained that the rise in aviation fuel prices due to the Middle East war is a primary reason for international flight cancellations. As airfare increases alone cannot offset the rise in fuel costs, airlines are reducing operations, particularly on long-haul routes with low profitability.

Amid global instability, a tendency among consumers to prioritize "safety" when traveling abroad has also emerged. According to the Chinese business daily National Business Daily, citing a travel agency official in Sichuan Province, overseas travel bookings for this year's Labor Day holiday have decreased by about 30% compared to last year, with an even steeper decline in the South Asia region. The number of weekly flights to Sri Lanka and Nepal, previously four per week, has now dropped to just one per month.

In contrast, domestic travel demand, which carries relatively lower cost burdens amid economic slowdown, is on the rise. According to The Paper, China's Ministry of Transport expects a total of 1.52 billion passenger trips during this holiday period. Notably, there has been an increase in travelers choosing small provincial cities over major metropolitan areas. The Paper reported that bookings for small-city travel products have risen by 128% year-on-year, with destinations such as Pingtan in Fujian Province, Anji in Zhejiang Province, Yangshuo in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, and Libo in Guizhou Province emerging as popular travel spots.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.