During the Spring Festival holiday, Suzhou saw local consumption grow, tourism thrive and social security improve. Let’s take a look back on the holiday through different figures.
Consumption
Retail sales exceed 1.523 billion yuan
Consumption in Suzhou grew during the Spring Festival golden week. The “Double 12 Suzhou Shopping Festival” and “stay put for Spring Festival” initiatives injected new impetus into holiday consumption. Sales of 100 key retailers and companies are expected to hit RMB1.523 billion yuan, or a year-on-year increase of 6.60 percent, according to Suzhou Bureau of Commerce.
There was an intense holiday air all over local business districts and commercial streets. Local districts, county-level cities, commercial departments and cooperative online platforms jointly held more than 1,350 promotional events, which boosted the holiday spending. Besides, catering industry saw a surge in the holiday as well. Many special eateries, restaurants and bubble tea cafes were packed to capacity in a lively atmosphere.
Tourism
5.87 million visits Holiday revenues exceed 3.89 billion yuan
Statistics from Suzhou Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism showed that the city received 5.87 million visits from January 31 to February 6 and visitor spending totaled about RMB3.89 billion yuan. Suzhou remained a popular destination for short trips and also a hot place that contributed a large number of tourists, according to multiple online tourism agencies.
Local culture and tourism departments launched “Suzhou-style New Year Festivity” series activities, covering delicacies, Spring Festival customs, exhibitions and dramas. Up to 70 percent of the promotional and experience activities were held online. Various tourist attractions including Tiger Hill Scenic Spot, Shangfangshan Forest Zoo, Humble Administrator’s Garden, Lingering Garden, and Lion Grove Garden also kicked off offline festive programs to enrich tourist’ experience.
Local museums saw surge in visitors, too. As of 12:00, February 6, Suzhou Museum has received 84,000 visitors; all the 28 opening museums (memorial halls) hosted a total of 205,000 visitors during the holiday, up 2.5 percent year on year.
Social Security
Various reports drop by 30 percent
Suzhou police has redoubled its efforts to improve security during the Spring Festival holiday. According to statistics, general reports, crime reports, traffic reports, fire reports went down 30.34 percent, 31.47 percent, 37.74 percent and 33.22 percent respectively.
A third of police force remained on duty during the Spring Festival holiday. Apart from that, another one third of police force were on standby. An average of 18,000 officers were dispatched every day and 4,200 police vehicles were mobilized to patrol and maintain public order starting January 27. Besides, about 15,000 officers and 33,000 volunteers did their part in the enforcement of firework ban during the Spring Festival holiday.