BEIJING, April 4 -- China's tourism industry raked in 39 billion yuan (5.74 billion U.S. dollars) in revenue during the Tomb-sweeping Day holiday, official data showed on Tuesday.
The revenue was driven by 93 million domestic tourist trips, the National Tourism Administration said in a statement.
Tomb-sweeping Day, also known as Qingming Festival, is an important occasion for Chinese to honor their ancestors. Many also spend the three-day holiday on leisure travel.
Most of the tourists hit the road for short-haul trips. Meanwhile, Railway operator sent 35 million passengers, most of whom headed for the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei area and the Yangtze River Delta region.
China's tourism industry is key to the country's shift towards a more service-driven economy and is a useful indicator of the strength of consumer spending.
