(Yicai Global) June 15 -- Students graduating from high schools and colleges in China have been driving domestic tourism with their plans to travel the country over the summer vacation.

Travel bookings by school and college leavers nearly doubled for early June to the end of August from a year ago, according to data from online travel agency Trip.Com, The Paper reported today.

Chinese graduates prefer to travel by rail and in fact, according to the data, they have booked more than three times as many tickets for trains as they have for planes. 

The national college entrance examination, known as gaokao, was held from June 7 to 9. Air tickets booked by 17 to 19 year olds for flights between June 9 and 12 soared four-fold from a week earlier, according to Qunar, another online agent. Chengdu, Chongqing, Kunming, Shanghai, and Beijing were among the top destinations.

Tickets for scenic spots reserved by high school and college graduates this summer jumped over 3.5 times from a year earlier, Trip.Com’s data showed. Although some have been offering free tickets to gaokao students, theme parks remain the big draw.

Editor: Futura Costaglione