Chinese people spent more time on leisure activities in 2021 compared with the period before the novel coronavirus hit, according to a recent report by the China Tourism Academy. The academy said that urban residents' leisure time was closely related to their work. They spent more time on leisure activities on weekends in 2021, about 4. 4 hours a day, compared with an average of 3. 82 hours a day on workdays. It said that urban residents, leisure time increased both at weekends and during holidays in 2021 when compared with 2019. Daily weekend leisure time increased by 0. 91 of an hour and that during holidays by 0. 64 of an hour. The time that people in rural areas spent enjoying leisure activities rose nearly 39 percent compared with 2019, increasing to 4. 36 hours a day from 3. 14 hours before the COVIEM9 pandemic struck.
Shopping at physical stores remained the most popular leisure activity for both urban residents and people in the countryside, followed by activities like facial treatments, hairdressing and manicures (修指甲)."Shopping is my favorite way to give vent to my negative emotions and pressure, also for leisure," said Li Lingli, a 28-year-old financial analyst in Beijing. She said she had quite a heavy workload on workdays and also on weekends, meaning she didn't have much time to enjoy other leisure activities, especially outdoor ones like camping or hiking.
The report said it will be difficult to increase people's leisure time in the future due to the large amount of time they spend working and looking after children.
A recent survey by the academy shows that 50 percent of urban residents worked over eight hours a day and 15 percent worked over 10 hours a day. "Heavy workload is truly a big problem," Li said. "For me， as long as I don't message or email back my clients, it's my leisure time. I sometimes go to museums or exhibitions over holidays. It's also a good form of leisure to appreciate beautiful art pieces. "
Dai Bin, chairman of the academy, said at an online conference that with more rural residents spending time on leisure activities thanks to the nation's rural vitalization (振兴) policy, the tourism market and travel companies will embrace new growth in the future.
