Scorching summer heat prompts Chinese holiday-goers to seek respite in indoor ice and snow events

Summertime scorching heat has made indoor ice and snow activities a popular choice for the public in China. 

China-based online tourism platforms witnessed a surge in user searches and bookings. Industry observers say the trend indicates how an economic recovery is reshaping consumer spending habits.

As of the end of July, online searches for skiing events on Trip.com, a China-based online travel platform, shot up by 89 percent month-to-month. Indoor skiing-related booking rose by 70 percent month-on-month, while ticket orders for related attractions increased by 41 percent month-on-month, a representative from Trip.com told the Global Times on Wednesday.

Another China-based e-commerce platform Meituan told the Global Times that searches for "indoor ski resorts" increased by 161 percent year-on-year during the first two weeks of July, while ski bookings rose by about 25 percent month-on-month.

Preparing for the 2024-2025 ski season, Chunqiu Travel Agency announced a presale on July 24, and the sales exceeded one million yuan ($139,250) within two hours, the agency said.

During this year's summer holidays, "off-season skiing" has become a popular pastime for people in southern China to beat the summer heat.

Ticket sales in Window of the World-Alps Ice and Snow World from Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong Province, also China's first indoor ski resort, increased four to five times in July from June, and orders for indoor ice and snow activities have also risen significantly, a manager from the Window of the World-Alps Ice and Snow World told the Global Times on Wednesday.

He said that numerous tourists from Hong Kong had come for indoor skiing, and they mentioned that summer indoor skiing helped them practice their basic skills, preparing them for outdoor skiing in winter.

"From early July, we have received over 1,000 indoor skiing visitors on week day, with numbers rising to between 2,000 and 3,000 on weekends. In contrast, daily visitors from March to May were only few hundreds," Bai Yupeng, the foreman From Window of the World-Alps Ice and Snow World told the Global Times on Wednesday.

The growing demand for indoor ice and snow sports has prompted businessmen in southern China to invest in related projects, insiders told the Global Times.

Shanghai Yaoxue Ice and Snow Word announced on July 26 about its completion and noted that the tickets will be available starting August 8 on the official WeChat mini-program, and from midnight on August 9 on the Trip.com.

Four-hour tickets are priced at between 420 yuan ($58.49) and 780 yuan, while four-hour free-play are priced at between 220 yuan to 400 yuan, according to information sent from Trip.com to the Global Times on Wednesday.

In recent years, the popularity of the Winter Olympics and winter sporting events has boosted the development of summer indoor ice and snow sports, Yang Yong, the director of the Department of Tourism Management in the East China Normal University told the Global Times on Wednesday.

"Previously, sightseeing was the dominant summertime activity, but now tourism-induced consumption has expanded significantly," Yang added, noting that the diversification of tourism consumption is an inevitable trend.