Chinese Tourists - fast, cheap and and lots of them!

China is expected to become the world’s biggest exporter of tourists for the first time this year, with about 78 million Chinese expected to travel abroad in 2012, according to the World Tourism Organization. (In comparison, 64 million US tourists made trips abroad in 2010). 

The travel industry is keeping apace as best it can as hotels hire Mandarin speakers and countries invest millions in PR campaigns aimed at raising their profile in China.

Most of China’s outbound tourists travel as part of a tour group, in order to save money and tend to be older, with members of sightseeing groups having an average age of 39, according to research by Australia’s Tourism Board.

Reducing costs also means packing as much sightseeing as possible into a short period it’s not unusual to combine Scandinavia, Belgium and France in a single five day trip for example.

Places with a connection to Chinese history are proving especially popular with China’s outbound tourists. Karl Marx’s German birthplace, Trier, has seen an influx of Chinese visitors in recent years. In Japan, the search for Chinese culture draws tourists Kyoto, where visitors can chart the influence of classical Chinese architecture on the ancient capital.

While Chinese tourists may save on food and hotels, they show less restraint when it comes to shopping as it is customary to return with gifts for family and friends who expect to receive brand-name electronics, clothing and cosmetics, (which are often cheaper abroad due to Chinese import taxes). Chinese tourists set aside over a third of their vacation budget for shopping, according to a 2008 study by the European Travel Commission.

Chinese tourist spending has been a boost to Japan’s ailing economy. Japan attracted over a million Chinese tourists last year, around twice the number of US visitors to the country, and Chinese visitors to Japan spend more than twice as much as British or US tourists, according to the Japan Tourism Agency.  The country’s tourism ministry hopes to boost the number of Chinese visitors to 6 million by 2020, and has already relaxed visa restrictions for Chinese travellers.

G20 recognises Travel & Tourism but must try harder

So, the G20 world leaders have finally recognized the importance of travel and tourism as a driver of jobs, growth, and economic recovery.  Considering the industry will contribute around US$2 trillion in GDP and 100 million jobs to the global economy in 2012, its about time. 

When the wider economic impacts of the industry are taken into account, travel and tourism is forecast to contribute some US$6.5 trillion to the global economy and generate 260 million jobs – or 1 in 12 of all jobs on the planet!

The G20 Declaration states: "we recognize the role of travel and tourism as a vehicle for job creation, economic growth, and development, and, while recognizing the sovereign right of States to control the entry of foreign nationals, we will work towards developing travel facilitation initiatives in support of job creation, quality work, poverty reduction, and global growth.”

Meaning what, exactly?

The G20 could boost  international tourist numbers by an additional 122 million, generate an extra US$206 billion in tourism exports and create over 5 million additional jobs by 2015 just by improving visa processes and entry formalities. 

Of the 656 million international tourists who visited G20 countries in 2011, an estimated 110 million needed a visa, many of whom were deterred from traveling by the cost, waiting time, and difficulty of obtaining a visa. Facilitating visas for these tourists, many from some of the world’s fastest-growing source markets such as the BRICs, could stimulate demand, spending, and ultimately create millions of new jobs in the G20 economies.

The issue of visas has been debated for many years, the European Tour Operators Association (ETOA) have conducted research that show that the Schengen area alone is missing out on close to €500m in tourism revenue due to inefficiency. In a case study 21 per cent of Indians applying for Schengen visas gave up because of delays, while the figure was even higher for the UK at 26 per cent.

On a day that the Government announces that it is scrapping GCSEs and re-introducing more 'rigorous' O-Levels back into schools - their report is 'must try harder'.

Travelism!!

 

I've never really understood what Geoffrey Lipman actually does, apart from swan around the world delivering speeches, but I do like his idea of 'Travelism'..!


Travelism is merging both terms of travel and tourism. Both are distinctive, although intimately linked to each other.  Tourism, of course, always involves travel but travel is not necessarily done for tourism reasons. Neologist term “Travelism” recognizes then this relationship. Travelism takes a holistic view of the travel and tourism value chain at strategic, policy and operational levels. Travelism is more able than ‘tourism’ to capture the full extent of the travel value chain, the full direct economic and social impact of the activity, or its catalytic indirect effect on related activities, like infrastructure or communications.


Geoffrey Lipman was at the Mekong Tourism Forum, where he told delegates from Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, and Myanmar that while the projections showed that they will remain one of the fastest-growing regions for tourists in the world for some time to come, they should put in place strong green growth strategies now to get lasting benefits.

He said that green growth does not mean instantaneous change to a low-carbon, resource-efficient, inclusionary-development pattern, but a progressive shift from the traditional “grow first, ask questions later” mindset.  He added that the dynamics of growth and the global public interest in the case of Myanmar, are an additional factor that make capacity management a major issue and sustainability a key starting point for policy.

His book, “Green Growth and Travelism – Letters from Leaders,” contains useful policy guidance on transformation from some of the most important decision-makers inside and outside the sector. 
In Chiang Rai, Geoffrey Lipman declared that ICTP – whose mission is to promote green growth and quality with destinations – is committed to working with Pacific Asia Travel Mart (PATA) and the Mekong Tourism Organization to bring its messages to the region, particularly into education and training systems.

What is the ICTP?  The International Council of Tourism Partners (ICTP) is a travel and tourism coalition of global destinations committed to quality service and green growth. ICTP engages communities and their stakeholders to share quality and green opportunities including tools and resources, access to funding, education, and marketing support. ICTP advocates sustainable aviation growth, streamlined travel formalities, and fair coherent taxation. ICTP supports the UN Millennium Development Goals, the UN World Tourism Organization’s Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, and a range of programs that underpin them.

The Ups and Downs of London Visitor numbers

There’s a lot of conflicting information about regarding visitor arrival numbers in London this summer..

On the one hand we have - "London Tourism to skyrocket during the Olympics"

But on the other we have "Jactravel forecasts the a 30% Olympic hotel slump"

So what’s the real truth here?

Well, the official (that is Government line) is that travellers will be flocking to London this summer to watch and participate in the Olympics related activities with London expected to see a sharp rise in the number of foreign related travel and tourism as well as an increase in the number of Londoners who will remain at home for the Olympic games.  

London is expected to see up to a fifteen percent increase in the number of visitors it received as compared to the previous summer season. About twenty five percent of those tourists will be travelling from the U.S. and Canada. Additionally, Britons will decrease the amount of their travel abroad approximately five percent as compared to the same season last year.  

But talk to anyone involved in the inbound business and you get a different story.

JAC Travel is forecasting a slump in hotel bookings during the Olympic Games in London, with occupancy down by around 30 percent on the previous year. Their forecasts are based on a comparison of its hotel bookings at this time last year for London and other leading European cities. 

Currently, July is more than 35% down on 2011 and August is almost 30% down.  By comparison, major European cities are very substantially up, some by more than 100%. 

JacTravel’s customer base includes travel agents, tour operators and hotel booking web sites all over the world, with no particular emphasis on any one origin market and so is a good barometer for what is taking place generally.

Mario Bodini, CEO of JACtravel says: “There is a tragic irony in the numbers we are seeing. London will be a fantastic place to visit in July and August, with lots of cultural activities taking place around the Olympics, in addition to all the city’s well-known, marvellous attractions. It is a time when the place should be heaving but instead it is likely to be comparatively empty.” 

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London Tourism to skyrocket during the Olympics

Jactravel forecasts the a 30% Olympic hotel slump