Short-trip boom boosts car rental, camping business

BEIJING - The popularity of short-distance travel has spurred the growth of the car rental and camping markets in China during the weeklong National Day holiday, latest data shows.

Short and medium-distance intra-province trips accounted for a big share of the 255.54 million passenger trips estimated to have been made in China from Oct 1 to 7, according to the Ministry of Transport.

Self-driving tours and trips to nearby locations were also highlights of the holiday, according to the ministry.

Car rental services giant CAR Inc said its orders and total leased days during the holiday both increased from last year, with younger generations growing into a major customer community.

Mafengwo, a Chinese travel services and social networking site, said the bookings for local trips on its platform soared over 90 percent year on year during the holiday.

Suburban parks and villages near cities were among the most popular destinations, data from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism shows.

Camping has become popular for short trips. Data from e-commerce platform JD.com shows that camping gear sales jumped 97 percent year-on-year during the holiday, and sales of outdoor storage goods soared 457 percent.