National Day spending hits 482 billion RMB

China's tourism revenue during the recently-concluded seven-day "Golden Week," whichcelebrates the country's Oct. 1 national day, totaled 482.2 billion RMB ($72 billion) thisyear. That number marks a 14.4 percent year-on-year increase, according to ChinaNational Tourism Administration (CNTA).During the vacation period, China saw a total of 593 million travelers, up 12.8 percentcompared with the same period last year. According to China's railway department, arecord 108 million passengers took the train during the holiday, a 9.3 percent year-on-year growth.Thanks to the relaxation of visa requirements for Chinese citizens, China witnessed an 11.9percent growth in outbound tourists during the holiday. From Oct. 1 to 7, the number ofoutbound tourists reached 1.39 million. South Korea, Japan, Russia, Thailand, Australia,Vietnam, Malaysia, France and Singapore were the top destinations, though visa-freepolicies also attracted Chinese tourists to Morocco, Tonga and Tunis.