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A Holiday in a Small County Town

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During the National Day holiday, more Chinese travellers chose small county towns over famous big-city sights.

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A Holiday in a Small County Town

Every October, the National Day holiday sends hundreds of millions of people onto the roads. In the past, most of them headed for the same famous places. This year, something different happened. The small towns won, and a new phrase was born: running to the county.

The numbers tell the story. During the seven-day holiday, people in China made 826 million trips inside the country and spent 738.4 billion yuan, up 6.3 percent and 4.3 percent from last year on a daily basis. What is more interesting is where they went. On one travel platform, hotels in fifth-tier cities such as Ali and Nagqu saw the biggest rise in bookings. Eight of the ten most popular ticket sites were in small cities or below. Hotel bookings in county towns jumped 35 percent.

Why are travellers turning away from big cities? Part of the answer is simple: they want a rest, not a crowd. A visitor from Beijing said she chose a small town in Shanxi because there were no long lines and the trip felt better. She watched a local fireworks-and-iron show, a traditional craft that dates back centuries. Another traveller spent five days in Xuzhou for good food and slow walks, and the whole trip cost him less than 3,000 yuan.

Travel has also changed in a deeper way. Instead of taking photos in front of famous sights, more people want to do something with their own hands. In one village in Yunnan, visitors learn the old craft of tie-dyeing cloth; in another place, they join a surfing class on the beach. Big data shows that long trips of eight days or more rose from under 6 percent in 2024 to over 10 percent this year.

For small towns, this is a real chance. County hotels, restaurants and markets all feel the change, and local traditions find new value. A holiday is no longer only about going far. Sometimes it is about going somewhere that still feels like home.

Words to know:

长难句拆解 · 转折对比与并列动宾

第一句:What is more interesting is where they went. 这句话看起来短,却是英语里很典型的名词性从句叠加结构。What is more interesting 是主语从句(更有意思的事情),is 是系动词,where they went 是表语从句(他们去了哪里)。写作时用这种「What…is where…」的句式,可以自然地引出对比,比直接说 They went to small towns 更有层次。 直译:更有意思的是他们去了哪里。

第二句:County hotels, restaurants and markets all feel the change, and local traditions find new value. 这是由 and 连接的并列句,前后分句结构对称。前一分句的主语是三个名词并列 County hotels, restaurants and markets,谓语是 feel,宾语是 the change(感受到这种变化);后一分句的主语是 local traditions,谓语是 find,宾语是 new value。这种「多个主语 + 一个谓语」的写法叫并列主语,注意谓语不必用复数形式以外的变化。 直译:县城的酒店、餐馆和市场都感受到了这种变化,而当地的传统文化也找到了新的价值。

同义替换 · 雅思阅读利器

雅思阅读的题干很少照抄原文,它更喜欢把同一个意思换一种说法。下面这些替换在本题材里很常见,先自己盖住右边,试着回忆。

  • head for famous places → travel to well-known destinations(「前往」与「知名景点」的双重替换)
  • see the biggest rise in bookings → record the largest growth in reservations(增幅、预订的书面表达)
  • turn away from big cities → move away from big cities / avoid large cities(转向、避开)
  • they want a rest, not a crowd → they prefer quiet places to busy ones(对比结构的改写)
  • dates back centuries → has a history of hundreds of years(历史悠久的两种说法)
  • long trips of eight days or more → journeys lasting at least eight days(行程时长的改写)
  • this is a real chance → this is a genuine opportunity(机会、机遇的同义替换)
阅读自测 · 3 题
  1. 判断正误:Hotel bookings in county towns grew by about a third this holiday.
  2. 简答:Why did one traveller from Beijing choose a small town in Shanxi?
  3. 选词填空:Long trips of eight days or more rose from under 6 percent in 2024 to over ____ this year. (A. 10 percent B. 35 percent C. 6 percent)
参考答案与解析
  1. True(正确)。原文是 Hotel bookings in county towns jumped 35 percent。题干把 jumped 换成了 grew by about a third,35% 略高于三分之一,属「同义替换 + 近似表达」,因此判定为正确。做题时要留意数字题常把精确值改成约数。
  2. Because there were no long lines and the trip felt better.(因为没有长长的队伍,旅行体验更好。)答案就在原文这一句,题干用 choose 替换了原文的 chose…because,定位到那位北京游客的引述即可。
  3. A. 10 percent。原文为 rose from under 6 percent in 2024 to over 10 percent this year。B 的 35 percent 是县域酒店预订增幅,C 的 6 percent 是去年的起点,都属于「偷换对象」的干扰项——数字对得上,但对应的指标不对。
中文译文

每年十月,国庆假期都会把数亿人送上路。过去,他们中的大多数人都会奔向那几个著名的地方。今年却出现了不同的情况:小城镇赢了,一个新词也随之诞生——「奔县」。

数字说明了问题。在这个七天假期里,全国国内出游 8.26 亿人次,花费 7383.75 亿元,按日均计算分别比去年增长 6.3% 和 4.3%。更有意思的是他们去了哪里。在一家旅行平台上,阿里、那曲这样的五线城市酒店预订量增幅最大;十个门票销量最高的景区里有八个位于三线及以下城市;县城酒店预订热度则增长了 35%。

旅行者为什么正在离开大城市?一部分答案很简单:他们想要休息,而不是拥挤。一位来自北京的游客说,她选择山西的一座小城,是因为那里没有长长的队伍,旅行体验更好。她看了一场当地的火花与打铁花表演,这是一门可以追溯到几百年前的传统技艺。另一位旅行者在徐州待了五天,只为吃好饭、慢慢走走,整趟行程花了他不到三千元。

旅行也发生了更深层的变化。比起在名胜前拍照,更多人希望亲手做点什么。在云南的一个村子里,游客学习扎染这门古老的手艺;在另一个地方,他们报名参加海边的冲浪课。数据显示,八天及以上的长途行程占比从 2024 年的不足 6% 上升到今年的超过 10%。

对小城镇来说,这是一个真正的机会。县城的酒店、餐馆和市场都感受到了这种变化,而当地的传统文化也找到了新的价值。假期不再只关乎走得多远,有时也关乎去一个仍然像家的地方。