Travel experts gathered at Trip.com Group’s global partner summit and ITB Asia in October to discuss the return of Chinese tourists to the world stage.
During this year’s Golden Week holiday, which ran from October 1 to 7, the volume of outbound travel from China surged by over 800 percent compared to the same period in 2022, according to Trip.com Group.
“As international travel makes a strong comeback, we are witnessing a surge in demand from Chinese travelers seeking diverse and enriching experiences abroad,” said Jane Sun, CEO of Trip.com Group, in a statement. “This Golden Week has been a remarkable turning point.”
Yet, Chinese outbound travel is still far from its pre-pandemic height. In August 2023, there were 20,940 international flights into and out of China, less than half the number available in August 2019, according to flight database OAG. The long wait time for a visa — the application process for a Schengen visa, for example, can take up to six months — has also deterred Chinese nationals from certain long-haul destinations.
These were some of the topics discussed at Trip.com Group’s global partner summit on October 24 and the subsequent ITB Asia travel trade show held the same week in Singapore. Travel experts from around the world gathered to discuss the state of the tourism industry, new marketing trends, and how the Chinese traveler has changed. Continue to read the full article here
