China’s October Holiday 2025 Outbound Travel Forecast

(Updated 24 September)

One of China’s longest public holidays of the year is coming up from 1-8 October, with a total of eight consecutive days off to celebrate China’s National Day on 1 October and Mid-Autumn Festival on 6 October. Also known as Golden Week, this holiday is one of China’s peak periods for outbound travel, especially long-haul trips.

What should overseas travel brands expect from the holiday? We’ve rounded up all the data released by Chinese travel agencies and booking platforms so far.

Dragon Trail International: Our 12th Chinese Traveler Sentiment Report, released on 24 September, also includes extensive consumer survey data on Golden Week plans. Based on our survey results, we forecast that the majority of trips will be within Asia, with an especially strong outlook for South Korea. Europe will maintain its strong lead for long-haul travel. Most bookings will be largely made within one month of travel, and FIT will stand out as the preferred mode of travel, especially among younger generations. Golden Week vacationers will largely travel with friends or as couples, followed by the family travel market. Read our full report, or watch a recording of our webinar for more information.

Qunar: According to OTA Qunar’s bookings for international hotels, the top destinations for the October holiday are: Japan, Thailand, South Korea, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Australia, Russia, Singapore, and Italy. The fastest growth destinations are Egypt, Vietnam, Uzbekistan, Cambodia, Sweden, Belgium, Sri Lanka, Norway, Russia, and Italy.

GZL International Travel: An August 2025 report from travel agency GZL International Travel in August identified three major consumer groups for Golden Week bookings: Gen-Z adventurers (32%), with travelers aged 20-35 seeking out internet-famous destinations and following RedNote trends to niche, photo-worthy destinations and adventurous activities like skydiving; Millennial parents (21%) opting for visa-free, family-friendly destinations like Malaysia, Laos, the UAE, and Australia and New Zealand; and “silver leaf peepers” (22%), travelers aged 50-65 who are taking longer, more comfortable and higher-end trips to appreciate autumn beauty in Europe, North America, and Japan. The report highlighted significant growth in inquiries and bookings for France, Switzerland, and Italy in Europe; Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan in Central Asia; Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan in the Caucasus; and the Balkans.

Utour: Travel agency Utour’s holiday preview data showed a 130% increase in outbound travelers. Like GZL International Travel, they also noted an increase in older travelers heading to North America for the fall foliage. In Europe, Spain, Portugal, the UK, and the Balkans were the most popular, with growth rates of more than 90%. Leading short-haul destinations included Singapore, Sri Lanka, Bali, Brunei, and Vietnam. Niche, dark horse destinations included Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Kenya, and Cuba. As an overall trend for both domestic and outbound travel, the standard tour group size has now decreased from 30 to 20 people, with many tours for even smaller groups.

Airbnb: Searches for international accommodation during the National Day holiday period nearly doubled compared to last year. Japan remained the top outbound destination for Airbnb searches, with Italy, France, Spain, New Zealand, South Korea, Indonesia, Australia, the US, and the UK also in the top 10. Half of the 20 most-searched cities were in Europe, with hotspots in Italy, Spain, France, and Greece. Read more information from Airbnb’s 2025 Golden Week report.

Trip.com Group: Golden Week 2025 is set to be one of the busiest travel periods in recent years, with outbound accommodation bookings from China on Trip.com Group platforms experiencing three-digit growth year-on-year growth. Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore are the top five destination countries. Bookings revealed strong demand for islands and beach destinations throughout Asia and Oceania, as well as emerging European hotspots including Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, and Copenhagen. In Africa and the Middle East, Johannesburg, Doha, and Abu Dhabi have all seen dramatic year-on-year growth in bookings. (Read more in the Trip.com Group’s press release)

Agoda: Digital travel platform Agoda reported a 26% increase in searches for Golden Week travel this year, including both domestic and international travel. The top outbound destination is Osaka, with just over double last year’s searches, followed by Tokyo, Bali, Seoul, and Kyoto.