Young travelers are hungry for adventure, and it’s taking them to Africa.
25.08.2023 - 14:22 / skift.com / Selene Brophy
If the sudden dropping of all restrictions by the Chinese government caught travel agents and tour operators off-guard, it begs the question: why?
China’s tourism experts warned the industry to prepare for the return of the Chinese traveler months ago — meaning active destination promotions with special packages catering to China’s reopening should already be in place.
However, key concerns out of the travel agent’s direct control include air connectivity, visa and passport application backlogs, and Covid-19 travel requirements. But come Sunday, the revenge Chinese traveler will enter the fold whether the sector is ready or not, as China lifts long-held quarantine requirements.
In 2019, 155 million Chinese travelled abroad, spending $254.6 billion, with meaningful recovery in mass tourism only expected in the second quarter of 2023.
Destinations with ease of access will be the winners as the wave of Chinese tourists spreads across the globe. The United States is one of the many countries imposing mandatory COVID-19 tests on travellers from China.
The continued backlog of U.S. visa applications is an issue for most countries worldwide and a stumbling block to tourism’s recovery. As a result, the U.S. won’t see a significant influx from Chinese travelers, despite being one of the two top destinations for Chinese Travelers.
Regional destinations such as Japan, Thailand, South Korea and Singapore will now top the list for Chinese travelers, as does France and Australia.
“We’re anticipating a slow return to long-haul travel,” said Tourvest subsidiary, Sense of Africa‘s Asian market manager Masa Yamawaki.
He noted that overseeing the market recovery for travel from Australia and Italy to Southern Africa has indirectly prepared his team for the opening of China, as most of the supply and service kinks were ironed out in 2022.
The Chinese New Year on January 22 is an unfortunate missed opportunity, as the window is too small for any significant uptake now that borders are opening up, he added. It is possible this was a strategic move by the Chinese Government to stem any rush following the opening of its borders.
However, the language barrier remains a concern, as Yamawaki noted access to trained mandarin speaking guides as a critical requirement for the Chinese traveler.
The pandemic decimated the tour guide business seeing many qualified guides who speak mandarin no longer working in the sector or returning home to China.
The hospitality industry was also particularly hard-hit, as a number of Chinese Restaurants that relied on the consistent business of International Chinese Travellers closed their doors too.
He added that Group Tour Chinese travellers are known to prefer Chinese cuisine when
Young travelers are hungry for adventure, and it’s taking them to Africa.
The corporate division of Flight Centre Travel Group is outperforming the company’s leisure travel bookings, pointing to a comeback for a sector that has suffered significant cutbacks during the pandemic.
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Ongoing demand for experiences points to a potential market worth hundreds of millions of dollars. With 70% of tours and activities still offline, companies are investing in tech that reduces booking friction and also enhancing the in-person experience.
The American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) claims that American Airlines has removed 40% of its fare inventory from distribution channels used by travel agents and travel management companies following the implementation of new systems with the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) New Distribution Capability (NDC) technology.
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Americans want savvy pricing regarding their travel experiences in the new year, as they keep an open mind about the type of things they plan to book.
There’s nothing quite like a surprise travel gift — and U.S. travelers are ready for it.
Flight Centre, the Australian-based travel agency well known for its mass-market brands, is firmly fixed on tapping into the rising demand for luxury experiences with an expected 15 percent growth in revenue for the segment.
Travelers are hungry for high-end experiences, and there appears to be no sign of the luxury bubble bursting anytime soon, with China still expected to add weight to the post-pandemic revenge travel surge.
Tour operators need to catch up in digitizing their systems to improve booking efficiency, brand reach and the overall quality of their experience. In a nutshell, the traditional way consumers find and book an attraction or activity needs to be more convenient.
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