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Tours to Europe are proving more popular than expected for the upcoming National Day holiday, while the previously attractive tours to Japan and South Korea are losing their luster, the Jiefang Daily reported today.

Shanghai China International Travel Service Co Ltd reported full bookings of more than 300 for 12 itineraries to Europe, despite a price increase of more than 1,000 yuan (US$120) for the National Day holiday. Tours to two or three European counties have become a hot property in the market.

All the other local travel agencies' European tours are also full.

By contrast, tours to Japan and South Korea are still waiting for customers. "Popular European tours have had a negative impact on the tours to Japan and South Korea, although we increased the prices by only less than 500 yuan during the holiday, much lower than in previous years," said Liu Xiaojun, spokesman with the Shanghai China Youth Travel Service Tour Corporation.

Moreover, from September 15, Japan began to issue visas to tourist groups in the provinces of Shangdong, Zhejiang, Liaoning, Jiangsu and Tianjin, bringing down the number of applicants in Shanghai, Liu pointed out, adding that travel agencies in Jiangsu and Zhejiang Province are good at starting a price war, with up to 60 percent discounts offered there.