Chinese travellers choose Canada’s Niagara Falls as top bucket list destination

 

But where are they headed? According to the survey, Australia, Japan and France are the most desired destinations to visit in the next 12 months.
 

1   Australia

2   Japan

3   France

4   Hong Kong

5   South Korea

6   USA

7   Maldives

8   Germany

9   Thailand

10 Taiwan
 

Surveying more than 3,000 Chinese international travellers and 1,500 hoteliers from around the world, the annual Hotels.com Chinese International Travel Monitor (CITM) examines the growth trends in mainland Chinese international travellers and the impact this is having on the global travel industry.
 

The findings are startling: outbound Chinese travellers could number around 174 million in four years’ time, spending about CDN$342 billion annually, according to forecasts. This is roughly equivalent to the GDP of a developed country like Singapore.
 

According to 2015 searches on Hotels.com from greater China, the most visited destinations in Canada were Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal; followed by Markham, Banff, Niagara Falls, Calgary, Victoria and Whistler. Although Toronto is the most popular overall destination for international travellers, according to the latest Hotel Price Index (HPI) Vancouver and four other Western cities are top spots among Chinese travellers.
 

Of the landmarks outside China they’d most like to visit in their lifetimes, the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt and Mount Fuji top their wish list, although Canada’s Niagara Falls was still a contender in the eighth spot.
 

1   Pyramids of Giza (Egypt)

2   Mount Fuji (Japan)

3   Eiffel Tower (Paris, France)

4   Palace of Versailles (Paris) 

5   Venice (Italy)

6   Grand Canyon (USA)

7   Himalayas/Mount Everest

8   Niagara Falls (Canada)

9   Acropolis of Athens (Greece)

10 Sydney Opera House (Australia)
 

“This year’s report is another wake-up call to host countries around the world to pull out all the stops to accommodate Chinese travellers and tailor their services for this market as the potential is huge,” said Abhiram Chowdhry, Vice President and Managing Director Asia Pacific for the Hotels.com brand “These new globetrotters really enjoy travelling. They are younger, more independent, highly tech-savvy, happy to spend – and they know exactly what they want.“
 

 – The average total amount spent per day by Chinese international travellers in 2014 was 3,324 RMB (CAD$653) including accommodation, with most splashing the cash on shopping, dining and sightseeing. This compares with 13,800 RMB (CAD$2,713) per day for the top 10 percent of Chinese travellers, parting with four times more than the average.  
 

 – The Hotels.com CITM identifies the growing influence of Gen Y travellers – the so-called ‘millennials’ aged 18 to 35. Fifty-nine percent of hoteliers surveyed say they’ve experienced an increase in Chinese guests aged 35 or under in the past year. The growth is especially strong in the Asia Pacific region, where 78 percent of hoteliers reported an increase. 
 

 – In the past 12 months, 80 percent of Chinese travellers have used online devices including mobile, desktop and laptops to plan and book travel, compared with only 53 percent last year. Half of all Chinese international travellers now use apps on their smart phones to plan and book trips, up from just 17 percent the year prior.