Popular tourism bazaar showcases locals' lust for travel

Ti Gong

How long is it since you last traveled to the Europe?

The COVID-19 pandemic has made overseas trips a challenging mission for locals, but the desire to travel has not been stifled by the coronavirus or the lockdown.

A tiny travel bazaar in a historical villa in downtown Changning District has become a popular attraction during the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday.

More than 500 citizens flocked to the European Travel Fair in the Anhe Garden Hotel between Friday and Sunday, not only to buy European products, taste exotic cuisines, pose with ski boards for the Alps or the tents for camping in the Bavarian forest, but also to learn the latest travel information and prepare for a possible trip in the near future.

The fair, as part of the Shanghai Style Fashion Festival and the city's Double Five Shopping Festival, was held on a piece of small grassland at the backyard of the hotel, a German-style residence built in 1925 and designed by legendary architect Laszlo Hudec (1893-1958).

Tourism bureaus from Switzerland, Poland, Croatia and Sweden as well as the German city of Hamburg and Flanders, Belgium took part.

"I just came to review the feeling of overseas traveling and talked with other enthusiasts," said Vincent Zhi, an IT engineer who works for a pharmaceutical firm in Pudong's Zhangjiang high-tech park.

Zhi said he planned a trip with his girlfriend to Luzern, Switzerland, in early 2020 but had to postpone the trip infinitely after the coronavirus outbreak.

"The event has reignited my hope and desire to make the trip possible," he said.

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International tourism businesses have rebounded strongly between January and May in 2022 with about 250 million cross-border travelers worldwide, tripling that of 2021, according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization.

The number of tourists to Europe has increased by three times on year and recovered to nearly half of the level before the pandemic.

"Most Shanghai citizens haven't traveled abroad for three years because of COVID-19, but traveling is part of the lifestyle of local people which cannot be changed by the pandemic," said Hu Ping, general manager of the Shanghai Yuelai Culture Media Co, an organizer of the fair.

China remains an important overseas tourism market for Switzerland despite the COVID-19 travel restriction, said Yu Shiwen, an official with the East China division of the Switzerland Tourism.

Tourists from Shanghai once accounted for a large majority of the Chinese travelers to the country before the pandemic, Yu said.

"People had to control their desire to travel abroad due to the ongoing pandemic, but the demands won't disappear and there might be a strong rebound," she said.

After the pandemic, local tourists are expected to focus more on the environmental protection and sustainability by taking trains or choosing hiking or camping for an in-depth travel, she added.

The tourism authority unveiled its new slogan "Swisstainable" at the fair to promote healthier post-pandemic traveling ways to locals.

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Pan Hua, chief representative of the Hamburg Liaison Office in China, said she expected Hamburg will become a popular tourism destination for locals after the restoration of overseas travel.

"The two sister cities have so many in common – they're not capitals but both prosperous harbor cities with a mother river," Pan said.

The fair is the inaugural event of the second Shanghai Style Fashion Festival, which aims to promote the city's culture and lifestyle from clothing, food, accommodation and traveling, especially among the young people.

"This year's festival is themed on 'A majestic Cosmopolitan' to send the message that Shanghai is still a charming 'magic city' after evolving from the long lockdown early this year," Hu said.

Other events, such as guided tours along the Suzhou Creek, a movie night about the city's vintage films, a reading club and some forums and exhibitions, will be held during the festival through September 23.

The first Shanghai style fashion festival in June 2021 attracted more than 6,000 visitors in four days, over 40 percent being younger than 30 years old.

Ti Gong