Australia tops Chinese tourist wish list
The world's biggest-spending tourists – Chinese travellers— have Australia well in their sights with Hotels.com Chinese International Travel Monitor showing Australia is number one on Chinese travellers’ wishlists, followed by France and New Zealand.
Surveying more than 3,000 Chinese international travellers and 3,000 hoteliers around the world, the third annual CITM reveals significant insights into all aspects of the changing behaviour of Chinese travellers and how the global hotel industry is adapting to maximise the benefits of this new market.
The top three criteria for Chinese travellers picking a destination are safety (48%), proximity to historical and heritage sites (37%) and cuisine (29%).
Australia delivers in these departments with our country's unspoiled nature and exceptional food and wine experiences.
The study finds Australia has an additional winning factor over other destinations, being voted the “Most Welcoming” country by Chinese travellers ahead of Singapore.
This popularity is not necessarily translating to independent travel here in Australia. Based on the number of room nights booked on the Hotels.com Chinese website last year, Australia ranked number 11 on Chinese travellers’ itineraries. The first four places were unchanged from 2012, with the USA, Hong Kong, Thailand and Japan maintaining their positions as the countries most visited by Chinese travellers.
With a 5% increase in independent travel by Chinese compared to group packages in 2014, technology is playing a larger role, both in the booking process and availability at the destination.
More than half of Chinese travellers book their hotel accommodation either via the web or mobile apps, up from 45% in 2013.
The provision of free Wi-Fi is chosen as the most important service in a hotel by 59 per cent of those surveyed.
Top 10 destinations Chinese travellers would like to travel to in the next 12 months:
1. Australia
2. France
3. New Zealand
4. USA
5. Switzerland
6. Canada
7. UK
8. Singapore
9. Hong Kong
10. Germany
