China's National Day holiday starts with rising tourism revenue

Tourism income in China rose 12.2 percent year on year on Sunday, the first day of the country's National Day holiday, China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) said.

Total tourism revenue hit 96.5 billion yuan (14.5 billion U.S. dollars), according to the CNTA.

The country's major tourist destinations received a total of 113 million visitors on Sunday, up 10.5 percent year on year.

No major safety accident happened during the day, it said.

Data from travel agencies showed that over 110,000 people traveled overseas in groups. Popular destinations include Russia, Australia and the United States.

The data also showed that outbound self-driving tours more than doubled the orders during the first day of the National Day holiday.

China's major tourist destinations are expected to receive a total of 589 million visitors during the holiday, up 12 percent from last year. Tourism income should rise 13.5 percent to 478 billion yuan during the period, according to a survey by China Tourism Academy and Ctrip, an online travel agent.

The National Day holiday is one of China's two "Golden Weeks," during which passenger flow, tourism revenue and retail sales usually surge.