Chinese travellers are less obsessed with shopping when they travel overseas and are now opting for local experiences, according to insights by GfK and ForwardKeys.
The report reveals Hong Kong as a shopping haven is losing its shine for the mainland visitors, as their numbers intending to visit the country has dropped by nearly 48% from April to September compared to the same period last year.
Japan is popular for its rich culture and history. (Image credit: gautier075/iStock)
Instead the Chinese travellers are making a beeline for South Korea, Thailand, and Japan that remain as the top three travel destinations according to the insight.
Flight bookings to South Korea increased by 85% over the same period last year, while Thailand and Japan saw bookings going up by 60% and 50 respectively.
Increased interest in Thailand and Japan, perceived by the Chinese to be rich in history and culture, indicate that they are now more drawn to experience destinations.
Laurens Van Den Oever, global lead for travel and hospitality, GfK, said of the findings: “Trips to Hong Kong from China are down, affected to some degree by the yellow umbrella protest that took place over an extended period of time in the fourth quarter of last year.
“A GfK study on the destination image of the top five Asian countries among Chinese reported that the key draw of Hong Kong is shopping; and the decline in tourist numbers could mean that shopping is no longer a priority for mainlanders.”
Olivier Jager, CEO of ForwardKeys said that local government policies also played a contributing role in global tourism. “For instance, the ease in visa requirements in Japan and Thailand for mainland Chinese has positively impacted tourism with the considerable increase of these visitors in the countries.”
