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Former Director General of Marketing and Communications, CNTA is Speaking at WTM-ChinaContact Conference on Bilateral Tourism Relations with China this November 6th
The upcoming WTM-ChinaContact conference on bilateral tourism relations with China, Chinathe future of Travel is gearing up to be the most comprehensive collection of knowledge and expertise on Chinas tourism sector ever assembled outside China.
A keynote speaker and chairperson of the session on bilateral tourism, Mrs. Shen Hui Rong, has until recently held the position of Marketing & Communications Director General at China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) in Beijing. For over 27 years, Mrs. Shen played key roles in Chinas rapidly developing tourism industry. She implemented Chinas recovery program post-SARS and has negotiated tourism agreements, known as ADS, with overseas destinations. Her work in this area earned her the nickname Ms. ADS.
We have asked Mrs. Shen about Chinas approach to outbound tourism and the role they see it playing in overall economic growth and social benefit to China.
When asked about the future potential of outbound tourism from China, Shen Hui Rong has told us “As usual when something is big in China, the numbers mentioned are staggering. The World Tourism Organization forecasts that China will become the worlds fourth-largest source of outbound tourists by 2020 with more than 100 million departures each year. Outbound travel from China jumped 50-fold in 20 years. In 1997, when the first batch of ADS destinations were approved including Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines and the Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions, only 5.32 million trips were made. The number became 16.6 million in 2002, 20.22 million in 2003 despite the SARS epidemic, 28.85 million in 2004 and 31 million in 2005. It is expected that 2006 will still see 34 million overseas trips (10% increase). China has already replaced Japan as Asias number one outbound travel market.”
According to the survey released in the Annual Report of China Outbound Tourism Development 2005, white collar and company managerial staff are the main source of outbound travel, making up half of the market. This is especially the case in Beijing and Shanghai. 80% outbound travellers are aged between 18-50 with high education. 45% of outbound travellers are from three-member families while couples or singles comprise 30%.
The cost of staying/eating in the UK and Europe is quite high. While this is a factor in people’s travel choices, at present the visa issue is still the major barrier for Chinese travellers to Europe. Since last July EU nations carried out a stricter visa policy for Chinese tourists and as a result the number of Chinese tourists to Europe has not increased by much.
At present, the most popular tours to Europe are:
14 days trip to Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy and Holland; 12 days trip to Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy, Vatican and Austria; 9 days trip to Switzerland, Finland and Belgium or Switzerland, Germany and Austria.
11 days trip to Spain and Portugal; 9 days trip to Nordic countries are the most aspirational products.
Most of the tours are city based if they travel to long-haul destinations but some Chinese golfers like to go to St. Andrews, which is included in tour packages.
Bilateral agreements and cooperation will enhance two-way traffic. The more people travel between two countries, the better understanding each other will attain. This will reduce the differences and cultural gap to further develop friendship between the two peoples.
World Travel Market is an important annual global travel trade exhibition organised by Reed Travel Exhibitions, a leader in travel related fairs around the world. This is the first time that WTM is holding a full day conference on Chinas tourism industry. It is cooperating with ChinaContact to produce a high quality event with rich content, high quality speakers and fantastic networking opportunities. It is to be the first time that the theme of bilateral tourism development with China is discussed and analyzed at senior level in Europe. As Chinas tourism sector continues to overwhelm expectations to grow faster than its economy, this topic will remain a hot issue for many years to come. Chinathe future of Travel will continually update the international travel community on the dynamic pace of change in China and the ways that companies and destinations can benefit from this astounding destination / market.
ChinaContact is a dedicated market entry specialist for Chinas tourism sector, involved in consulting, investments, luxury destination marketing and public relations, events management and conference productions.
