In February 2024, The Paper reported on luxury car rentals before the Spring Festival. A Rolls-Royce Phantom rented for 8,000 yuan a day, with a minimum of seven days. On Ctrip, the Beijing holiday rate for the same model was 9,600 yuan a day. Ctrip reported that its Spring Festival car rental bookings had grown more than threefold over the year before.
A partner in a Beijing rental firm said that the early renters did it “only to prop up the front of the house” (撑门面). Now their reasons vary. Some rent sports cars to drive home for matchmaking dates.