Under the epidemic, the tourism industry was hit hard, and public and business travel dropped sharply. At the same time, a large number of people who have never boarded an airplane began their first flight in their lives. Qunar released its announcement on December 2. Among the users who purchased tickets through Qunar this year, 9.34 million were flying for the first time, a record high in nearly five years.
Qunar CEO Chen Gang said that although the industry is facing a very big dilemma, Qunar will still achieve profitability in 2020, and the number of new transaction users will maintain a growth of tens of millions, of which users in cities below the third tier account for nearly half. Chen Gang pointed out that the domestic tourism market is entering a dual growth channel of popularization and quality. The user group of "flight for the first time" will continue to grow rapidly in the next two years, and they will become an important force supporting the development of Qunar and the entire tourism industry.
(Photo: Qunar CEO Chen Gang stated at the press conference on December 2 that Qunar will be profitable in 2020)
First to reach breakeven in June, it is expected to achieve profit for the whole year
Affected by the epidemic, the tourism industry has faced unprecedented challenges this year. Chen Gang said that with the outbreak of the epidemic at the end of January, the demand for travel has dropped to a freezing point, and the swept ticket refund pressure has put a huge service pressure on the travel platform, and Qunar has invested huge manpower and material resources to rebuild the system.
Since the second quarter, as the domestic epidemic has gradually stabilized, Qunar's core business has begun to grow steadily. Chen Gang said that in June, the entire platform had achieved a breakeven for the month; in August, the number of domestic air ticket bookings showed positive growth for the first time after the epidemic; in September, the number of domestic hotel bookings exceeded the same period last year.
In October, tourists' travel demand, which had been suppressed for most of the year, was finally released, and the tourism industry also ushered in the biggest wave of travel since the epidemic. Qunar data shows that the number of bookings of tourism products in 15 provinces and municipalities nationwide during the 11th period exceeded that of last year.
"According to the current rate of recovery, we will be profitable throughout the year by the end of December. Regardless of the level and speed of recovery, we are in the lead in the entire industry." Chen Gang said that the impact of the epidemic on the tourism industry is impossible. Avoidance, but in the face of huge travel demand, Qunar is still full of opportunities in the future.
Transaction users maintain a tens of millions of growth, and nearly half come from cities below the third tier
Chen Gang introduced that Qunar's number of trading users in 2020 has increased by tens of millions compared to 2019. Among the new users, users in cities below the third tier accounted for 46%, and the post-95 group accounted for as much as 40%.
Among them, 9.34 million users bought the first air ticket in their life through Qunar.com, a record increase in nearly five years. From Aershan City in Inner Mongolia Valley to Maerkang City in Sichuan, from Qilian in Qinghai to Changdao in Shandong, these users cover 1,827 county-level cities in China, including Tongwei in Gansu, Weining in Guizhou, and Zhenxiong in Yunnan. An underdeveloped region.
It is worth noting that among these 9.34 million users, nearly 30% have purchased air tickets at least twice in 2020. First-tier and new first-tier cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu and Shenzhen have become their first flight destinations. The farthest flight is from Kashgar to Guangzhou via Urumqi. The lowest price is 438 yuan, which is a 10% discount on the full economy class.
Chen Gang said that Qunar has been committed to using technology to promote the popularization of tourism since its establishment, and has helped 60 million people start their first flight at a lower price. "Every ticket is a story. Qunar is actually doing a special dream business." And these users will follow Qunar to grow together and become an active group in the travel market.
Next year there will be 629 million people flying by plane "quality + low price" to drive continuous growth
For the tourism industry in 2020, "high cost performance" has become a key word. Qunar data shows that in 2020, airfare prices will hit a five-year low, down 17% from last year.
In Chen Gang's view, under the epidemic, in addition to the decline in travel costs this year, users' travel consumption habits are also undergoing irreversible changes. According to Qunar platform data, this year's platform air ticket business has recovered faster than train tickets, the full room rate of high-star hotels has surpassed that of low-star hotels, and quality tourism products such as high-quality homestays and niche destinations have become popular throughout the year. While tourists are pursuing low prices, they also have new requirements for personalization, quality and safety.
Chen Gang said that Qunar's future direction is very clear and firm, which is to insist on "low price + quality". On the one hand, the pursuit of absolute low prices is maintained for high-quality and standardized products such as air tickets and high-star hotels; on the other hand, for those products with lower unit prices and fragmented products, the Qunar platform will help the supply side upgrade. Increase the user's sense of acquisition per unit of currency paid.
Qunar's 2021 travel forecast shows that 629 million people will travel by plane, an increase of 50% over 2020. The domestic tourism market is expected to usher in an explosion next year.
Chen Gang mentioned that an economist’s thesis was swiped a few years ago, “He said that 1 billion people in China have never been on a plane. This data seems inaccurate today, but his point is to tell us that we should never ignore it. Those huge silent markets. Next year, there will be many people who have never taken a plane and start flying for the first time in their lives. There will also be many users who are accustomed to in-depth overseas tours twice a year, who will invest this budget on domestic destinations. . This is our opportunity."