Archive for the ‘Tourism’ Category

Welcome to Ruder Finn’s travel and tourism newsletter.

With this newsletter, we aim to provide our clients and others in travel and tourism industry with a broad overview of the latest trends and newest regulations related to the Chinese travel and tourism industry.

This month, a variety of new trends are shaping the industry:

• While some of the data is contradictory, it is apparent that that the internet is becoming a major force in the travel market. Chinese consumers use the internet heavily to make their purchase decisions, while still using travel agents for final transactions. Travellers will search for conventional destination information ahead of their trips (61% of leisure trips taken), and then turn to online travel discussion forums (48%) to fine-tune their plans. In 2009, the revenue of on-line travel market in China was RMB3.89 billion, up 32.3% from last year, while in 2010, it is expected to reach RMB4.75 billion. Marketers, including those in the travel industry, who do not heed the power of the internet in China, do so at their peril.
• In addition, among internet users, open tours and do-it-yourself travel is preferred. Personalized forms of travel are now becoming more and more popular in China along with the continuous development of the economy and the increase of personal income. There is now much more of a need and a growing desire for self-expression and to liberate oneself, which is one reason why digital has become so fundamental, the new generation is using digital to have a more expressive life.
• Marketers must also understand that China’s middle class will reshape the world. Also, that travel is now an indicator of success and is a new dimension of what it means to be middle class, showing that you are on the journey, literally and figuratively! Those who want to harness the middle class’s spending power, must realize what is absolutely not happening is that the Chinese middle class are becoming western. They are becoming modern and internationalised, but they are not becoming western.
• And finally, in an unrelated topic, some good news: China’s hotel industry is reaping the benefits of the Shanghai World Expo, with Shanghai’s hotel market finally picking up after two downcast years. In May 2010, average room rates reached nearly RMB1000 (US$147.3), a level not seen since October 2008.Occupancy during the month exceeded those recorded in 2007, hitting 72 percent while room rates hiked 29 percent year-on-year. RevPAR was RMB700 for the market, a number not seen since November 2007 and a staggering 99 percent increase on May 2009.

You will find the full newsletter below. Please don’t hesitate to contact us with your comments and suggestions. We would especially appreciate them in light of our new format. Also, please do let us know if you do not wish to receive this newsletter at my email, oliynyks@ruderfinnasia.com, or by return email.

Best regards,
Shari Oliynyk
Director, Travel & Tourism

About Ruder Finn China’s Travel and Tourism Experience

Over the past 12 years, Ruder Finn China has developed and implemented numerous multi-faceted public relations programs in the travel and tourism sector. Ruder Finn’s work on behalf of international clients includes projects and programs promoting countries, airlines, resorts and major tourist destinations.

Ruder Finn China’s travel and tourism experience, combined with its worldwide track record, offers its clients a combination of truly knowledgeable local and international teams, delivering results that meet their needs and objectives – on time and on budget. Feel free to get in touch with us to discuss your requirements. Our contact information is indicated at the beginning of this newsletter. We look forward to hearing from you!

Travel Industry News

Yangtze River Delta outbound travel has entered second stage

Significantly more internet users searching for information on World Expo travel

China’s tourism confronted by insufficient stamina

“Internet users’ on-line behaviors survey 2010” released

Travel becomes most important leisure activity

Sogou.com introduces innovative travel product “E-Campers”

Each Travel Cooperates with Self Drive Club

Heating up competition in on-line travel market

MasterCard survey: 22% Chinese consumers have outbound travel plans in the next six months

Asia becoming an emerging power source of luxury travel

International SOS Helps China Establish Standards

Crowds at World Expo a double-edged sword

China Consumer and Economic News

China’s New Middle Class: Constants and Variables

China’s leisure industry realizes growth in 2009

Visa, Unionpay’s Dispute to Cost Users

China Inflation Rises to a 19-Month High

Google Asks for Government Pressure on China

Environmental Cost of Shark Finning Is Getting Attention in Hong Kong

China’s netizens hooked on social media

Destination News

Melbourne bureau to appoint China manager

NZ targets improvements in Chinese tour group experiences

The U.S. Department of State announces changes to the U.S. nonimmigrant visa application fee

Hawaii to launch a new MICE website in September; the state looks forward to attracting 60000 Chinese tourists in 2010

Asian celebrity Jerry Yan shoots photo album in Australia

Tourism Australia Partners With China Southern Airlines

US Tourism Roadshow in China in July

Airline/Aircraft News

China Spurs Boeing Orders, But Risks Loom

Lan Airlines appoints GSA in Beijing and Shanghai

Travel Industry News

Yangtze River Delta outbound travel has entered second stage

www.travelweekly-china.com, June 2, 2010

On May 28, it was announced by the Yangtze River Delta Outbound Travel Market Report released at the Outbound Travel Forum 2010 by the Shanghai World Travel Resource Congress, that consumers are getting more rational and mature about outbound travel, and thus outbound travel in the Yangtze River Delta has entered the second stage, featuring tourists experiencing the world and individuation in terms of purchasing.

Significantly more internet users searching for information on World Expo travel

www.hsw.cn, June 2, 2010

Since its opening of, the Shanghai World Expo tour has become a mainstream feature of the domestic travel market. According to data.baidu.com, increasing numbers of internet users have been searching for information on Expo travel.

China’s tourism confronted by insufficient stamina

www.travelweekly-china.com, June 3, 2010

On May 30, this reporter learnt from China Tourism Development Trends and Topics Forum that China’s travel competitiveness has reach a level comparable to the global median, ranking 47^th in the world, up from the previous 62^nd. However, China’s tourism features low consumption tendencies; for instance, the spending per capita on domestic travel was only RMB535.4 last year. Experts warn that the travel consumption growth per capita is noticeably slower than the increase of the actual price level, signalling thus that China’s tourism may soon be confronted by insufficient stamina.

“Internet users’ on-line behaviors survey 2010” released

www.xinhuanet.com, June 3, 2010

According to “internet users’ on-line behaviors survey 2010” released by UUidea.com, travel has become a popular leisure activity of internet users, who prefer open tours and do-it-yourself travel. Internet users trust travel websites with reasonable schedules and clear charges and online payment using web-based banks are increasingly used.

Travel becomes most important leisure activity

www.ce.cn, June 3, 2010

According to the Leisure Green Book released by the National Tourism Administration, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and Social Sciences Academic Press, travel has become the most important leisure activity for both urban and rural residents.

Sogou.com introduces innovative travel product “E-Campers”

www.travelweekly-china.com, June 8, 2010

On June 4, Sogou.com introduced an innovative travel product “E-Campers,” which gained attention from travel industry and relative media. This new product is low carbon, environmentally friendly, green travel, self-driven tours, outdoor sports, camping and many other popular culture elements.

Each Travel Cooperates with Self Drive Club

Travel Weekly China, June 10, 2010

Each Travel-Shenzhen CITS, a traditional tourism enterprise in China, has entered a strategic cooperation agreement with Ren Che Xing Self Drive Club.

The two sides will jointly create a new entity, Each Travel-Ren Che Xing Self Drive Club, aiming to make use of their own advantages to achieve better market appeal and competitiveness.

An official from Each Travel said personalized forms of travel are now becoming more and more popular in China along with the continuous development of the economy and the increase of personal income. The private car population in Shenzhen is now beyond 1.2 million, while self drive is occupying a larger and larger proportion in tourism market.

Heating up competition in on-line travel market

www.travelweekly-china.com, June 11, 2010

In 2009, the revenue of on-line travel market in China was RMB3.89 billion, up 32.3% from last year, while in 2010, it is expected to reach RMB4.75 billion. Major on-line travel enterprises are at present striving to gain more market share.

MasterCard survey: 22% Chinese consumers have outbound travel plans in the next six months

Shanghai Securities News, June 12, 2010

According to a survey by MasterCard, a quarter of consumers in the Asia Pacific region have holiday travel plans in the next six months. Japan, Australia and China are the most popular travel destinations in Asia Pacific region. Travel spending by mainland China consumers is expected to rise steadily.

Asia becoming an emerging power source of luxury travel

Travel Weekly China, June 17, 2010

The Asia region has become an emerging power source of luxury travel, as Asian elites’ consumption confidence continuously improving and their purchasing power reaching a new level, according to a survey conducted by China Economic Weekly.

International SOS Helps China Establish Standards

China CSR, June 23, 2010

The China National Tourism Administration has signed a cooperation agreement with International SOS to jointly draw up national standards for travel emergency assistance services.

The standards will make clear specifications on personnel, facilities and services of tourism reception bodies and professional relief agencies, and will help to create an emergency assistance system in China and to improve the security level of the tourism industry.

International SOS is the world’s leading international healthcare, medical assistance, and security services company, and has extensive experience in traveler assistance. It will organize an expert group to draw up the guidelines based on: research on the current situation in China, other countries’ experience, and comments from other assistance agencies and experts.

Crowds at World Expo a double-edged sword

July 2, 2010

Love it or hate it: crowds are buoying Shanghai’s tourism industry

But while visitors tackle the crowds at the Expo, China’s hotel industry is reaping the benefits, with Shanghai’s hotel market finally picking up after two downcast years.

In May 2010, STR Global said average room rates reached nearly RMB 1000 (US$147.3), a level not seen since October 2008.

Occupancy during the month exceeded those recorded in 2007, hitting 72 percent while room rates hiked 29 percent year-on-year. RevPAR was RMB700 for the market, a number not seen since November 2007 and a staggering 99 percent increase on May 2009.

Even the top-tier hotel market has benefited, with the 5 star market reporting occupancy of 79 percent at an average rate of RMB 2,091 for the month of May, resulting in RevPAR growth of 105 percent compared to May 2009.

China Consumer and Economic News

China’s New Middle Class: Constants and Variables

Huffington Post, May 29, 2010

China’s middle class, a modern force with timeless cultural imperatives, will reshape the world. To harness its spending power, marketers must realize that becoming modern and international is not tantamount to becoming “Western.”

If we define the lower edges of the middle classes as households earning 5,000 RMB a month (around USD 1,400 on an adjusted Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) basis) and the core middle classes as those earning 20,000 RMB a month (about USD 5,700 on an adjusted PPP basis), then we see that this is a very penny pinched middle class. There are around 125 million people that probably fall within the category, basically, anyone that is not struggling for day to day survival. It’s important to note, however, that China is still far away from being a middle class society.

More subtly, on an emotional level, there is a sense that there are certain, essential rites of passage to middle class-dom, such as homes, diamond rings, education, car ownership and other expenditures that are needed in order to cross that threshold. But these items are expensive, incomes are limited and disposable incomes remain low, yet these are necessities and need to somehow be paid for.

Travel is now also a marker of success and is a new dimension of what it means to be middle class, showing that you are on the journey, literally and figuratively!

Given their level of income the Chinese have an excuse not to be buying luxury goods, but luxury is so externalised it enables inconspicuously conspicuous consumption, i.e. to show off without being seen to do so. There is a craftsmanship to selling products in China, it’s communicating how your product will help the owner solidify their status, but avoiding clichés.

What is absolutely not happening is the Chinese middle class becoming western, they are becoming modern, they are becoming internationalised, but they are not becoming western. Every product that charges a premium needs to be a tool for social advancement. In China the product is a means to an end, the message driver has to be that this product will make you noticed and help you on your journey upwards.

Chinese consumers are becoming more educated about quality and are ruthless quality hunters; they are becoming much more demanding about quality, which is normal as the middle class evolves.

There is now much more of a need and a growing desire for self-expression and to liberate oneself, which is one reason why digital has become so fundamental, the new generation is using digital to have a more expressive life.

The digital revolution is also becoming so fundamental to the way the Chinese express themselves and define their identity, but needs are needs and they are now starting to demand better quality services.

China’s leisure industry realizes growth in 2009

www.travelweekly-china.com, June 4, 2010

According to the Leisure Green Book, China’s leisure related industries maintained rapid levels of growth despite the overbearing backdrop of the 2009 financial crisis, while travel has become an important leisure activity for Chinese people.

Visa, Unionpay’s Dispute to Cost Users

www.travelweekly-china.com, June 8, 2010

Visa said on Thursday that it would stop banks using China Unionpay’s system to settle international transactions with bank cards bearing the Visa and Unionpay logos. Media reports state that member institutions could face hefty fines from Visa in the event that they disobey these regulations. However, China Unionpay told Xinhua on Wednesday that no party has the right to restrict the payment channels that bank card holders choose to use. According to Visa’s rules, those using the Visa-Unionpay card outside of the Chinese mainland will face a one to two percent currency transfer fee on each purchase.

China Inflation Rises to a 19-Month High

New York Times, June 11, 2010

New data from China on Friday cemented the view that the country’s giant economy powered ahead in May — though a marked rise in inflation also raised the pressure on Beijing to slow the booming pace of growth.

Consumer prices rose at their fastest rate in 19 months, at a pace of 3.1 percent from a year earlier, the report said. And inflation could accelerate if more Chinese workers are successful in their efforts to get higher wages.

Industrial production and retail sales also grew forcefully, figures showed Friday, while data out on Thursday revealed imports and exports both topped analyst expectations by a wide margin. Property prices continued to soar in May.

Combined, the figures raised speculation among analysts that the Chinese authorities would have to intensify their efforts to tame the pace of growth and the unwanted side effect of inflation.

Tools at China’s disposal include a gradual rise in interest rates and an appreciation for the renminbi, which has been effectively tied to the dollar since late 2008, at what many observes say is an artificially weak level to help Chinese exporters compete internationally.

The timing of any such policy moves remains unclear, and the Chinese statistics office on Friday stressed that it believed inflation would wane again after rising above the 3 percent mark in May.

Economists at the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group said in a note to investors Friday that recent strikes “suggest that wage hikes will spread across industrial sectors, placing pressures on firms to raise prices on their final products” and that “inflation is far from its peak.”

It is time for the Chinese central bank “to switch its policy priority from controlling credit to raising interest rates in order to counter the risk of runaway inflation,” the bank said in its note.

Google Asks for Government Pressure on China

Global Times, June 12, 2010

Google Inc.’s top lawyer said Wednesday that the world’s leading search engine is asking the U.S. and European governments to press China to lift Internet censorship, describing it as an unfair barrier to free trade.

Environmental Cost of Shark Finning Is Getting Attention in Hong Kong

New York Times, June 20, 2010

Unluckily for sharks, the soup brewed from their fins is considered a must-have at Chinese wedding banquets and corporate dinners. For the Chinese, the delicacy is a matter of wealth, pride and prestige.

But the question of whether to eat shark’s fin soup has finally begun to gain traction with the Hong Kong public, spawning Internet discussion and campaign groups. The debate here could well influence the survival of numerous shark species.

And it puts the spotlight on the evolving environmental attitudes of the world’s most populous nation: China. China’s huge economy is booming. So what Chinese consumers buy and eat matters — on a global scale.

Researchers estimate that 100 million sharks are killed each year, some 73 million of them for the lucrative trade in shark fins. As demand, mainly from China, has soared, many shark populations have plummeted by as much as 90 percent in recent decades.

“If sharks continue to be overfished at the current rate, it’s only a matter of a few years before the targeted species are extinct,” according to Richard Thomas, communications director at Traffic, which monitors wildlife trade.

The fins are not cheap. Retailers in Hong Kong charge more than 2,000 Hong Kong dollars, or $260, per “catty,” a traditional weight measure commonly used in markets here and equal to a bit more than 600 grams, or 21 ounces. One catty makes about 10 portions of shark’s fin soup. However, the soup is losing some of its status — slowly.

Several vendors of dried seafood in the bustling Hong Kong neighborhood of Sheung Wan said last week that they now sold significantly less than they had a few years ago.

Hong Kong now has several groups that are opposed to shark finning — the practice of capturing sharks, removing the fins and then throwing them back into the water to die. In May, 12 restaurants and hotels pledged to offer shark-free options for banquets. Alibaba, the Chinese answer to eBay, has banned the sale of the fins on its site.

Sharks are fished in oceans around the world, but Hong Kong is the hub for the trade in their fins, handling between 50 percent and 80 percent of the global market. The fins go on to mainland China or to Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Taiwan. Hong Kong itself is also a major consumer.

Because Hong Kong is generally a trendsetter for upmarket spending in China, attitudes here could well influence consumption in the vastly greater mainland market, experts believe.

But conservationists have also taken their message to the mainland itself. Most prominent is a campaign by WildAid featuring Yao Ming, the National Basketball Association star, who was born in Shanghai. The campaign appears on CCTV, the main state television broadcaster, and on billboards and public screens in major cities.

“Many people in China are simply not aware that shark finning is wasteful, cruel and unsustainable,” said Michael Skoletsky, executive director at Shark Savers in New York, which also supports the campaign.

But changing attitudes is an uphill struggle. A survey by McKinsey, for example, showed last year that even though half of Chinese consumers said they wanted to understand the environmental impact of products they purchased, few actually walk the talk: Fewer than 3 percent ever purchased “green” products.

China’s netizens hooked on social media

Web in Travel 2010, June 28, 2010

With over four million Internet users in China, representing 29% of the population by the end of April 2010, the Internet is quickly replacing traditional media as brands and companies seek to connect with their consumers in new and different ways.

According to China Internet Network Information Center, the country’s official domain registry and research organisation, that’s an increase of around 50% over 2008, and a staggering increase of 1,500% since 2000.

In China, local Internet companies rule the digital space, and the numbers are mind-boggling. Local BBS (Bulletin Board System) was launched in 1994, marking the beginning of the Chinese Internet Community. Currently, it is home to over 384 million users who are online for an average of 16 hours per week, the same amount of time they spend watching television. There are 111 million people managing a social network profile, and these numbers are growing daily.

The Internet in China is dominated by long-running, local multi-service portals like Sina, QQ and Sohu that have been offering social networking, discussion forums, blogs, instant messaging and other “socialised media” long before Twitter and Facebook.

The power of the Internet in China has never been stronger and has not even begun to be realised fully ¬- the penetration rate is now only at 28% as compared to 70 to 80% in North America and Europe, according to World Internet Stats (Note: Cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangzhou have Internet penetrations of up to 60%, according to CNNIC).

The workings of the online travel market in China

Chinese consumers heavily use the Internet to make their purchase decisions, while still using travel agents for final transactions, for the most part due to convenience. Travel agents in China generally recommend travel packages they have either known for years or which offer them the greatest incentive, if the consumer has no specific destination or hotel in mind. This is why it is vitally important for brands to be top of mind with Chinese consumers BEFORE they contact a travel agency.

The Internet in China is extremely influential, according to CIC Data. 81 % of BBS and blog users check online word of mouth before purchasing a product. Some 56.3% of users said they “got to know brands” through online channels. About 58.7% actually made purchase decisions based on user-generated online info (compared to only 19 % in US. Even when not making a purchase, 89.9% of users still pay attention to online word of mouth.

The Nielsen Outbound Travel Monitor found that travellers will search for conventional destination information ahead of their trips (61% of leisure trips taken), and then turn to online travel discussion forums (48%) to fine-tune their plans. This suggests that opinions and comments about travel experiences posted to online forums are nearly as likely to influence travellers’ decisions as the destination websites themselves; in addition, travellers were much more likely to recall seeing Internet advertising for travel destinations, compared to seeing travel advertising on other mediums. Conventional travel agents were approached on only two in five travel occasions in China.

Twenty-five % of travellers who leverage social media and travel reviews in the decision making process, purchased travel online. This marks a notable shift in travel buying behaviour, as cash still remains the most popular payment gateway to purchase travel in China. (PhoCusWright FYI newsletter October 2009).

In addition to the rapid increase and penetration of the Internet in China, the online engagement in China is incredibly high with over 40% sharing travel reviews or uploading photos and videos online, compared to just under 20% in North America and Europe, according to a research report by Forrester Research “Chinese Technographics Revealed 2009″. Ninety percent of the Chinese Internet population actively read internet blogs, and a huge 81% are now actively writing blogs (Source, Wave 4 UM). This is a higher rate than in the US (66% read blogs, 33% write) and the UK (58 %read blogs, 25% write blogs).

Among Chinese broadband users, 46% used a search engine to make overall purchase decisions, compared with 25 % of US broadband users. (eMarketer, March 2008). Last July 2009, Comscore announced that Baidu is the second largest search engine in the world, and in March 2010, Google announced its departure from China. Baidu had, by far, the largest market share in Q4 of 2009, and is expected to further increase its position.

One of the ways to rank well in Baidu is to have websites that are optimised in Chinese. While Baidu has many non-China hosted sites in its database, it is very beneficial to have a .cn domain or to host the Chinese website in China (over 80 % of all Chinese websites have a .cn domain compared to only 15 % spotting a .com address, according to CNNIC).

Online travel booking in China in 2009 saw rapid development and has become a highlight of the tourism market. China’s online travel booking users in 2009 reached 30.24 million, an increase of 77.9 % from the previous year, according to a report released by China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC).

PhoCusWright reveals that China’s online travel space currently totals approximately US$6.9 billion, accounting for about 11 % of the country’s entire travel market. Due to a variety of factors, the online channel is expected to continue on a strong growth trajectory, and by 2011 will account for about 20 % of the total market. China’s online tourism market is booming as an increasingly wealthy middle class travels for leisure, while the use of credit cards and the Internet soars, according to Chinese internet research and consulting firm iResearch.

Localised social media strategies are most definitely needed. Sheer market size paired with increased wealth and consumerism is what started the original travel boom in China.

The emergence of new local entrepreneurs and increased global attention spurred by the events like the Beijing Olympics and Shanghai Expo (2010) will serve as a catalyst to grow China’s domestic and outbound travel. This upward trend continues despite a lack of standardised distribution, visa issues, the dominance of a few big travel agents, as well as lack of credit cards, all of which provide challenges.

Internet penetration in China is only at 28% and yet, even at this low rate, there are more Internet users in China than in the US. Leveraging the Internet to get brand insights and to connect with Chinese consumers is nowhere as powerful as in China. However, since the Chinese online landscape is so different, it is impossible to take a social media campaign from the West and plug it into China.

To be more effective, companies should consider the qualities that make Chinese netizens the perfect advocates of social media. For instance, social media campaigns should play on the individual’s susceptibility to shared opinions and values, by making the campaign as interactive as possible around the brand/product. The campaign should aim to make the Chinese netizen feel liberated by offering them opportunities to express themselves within the campaign: this could be done via profiles, avatars, BBS and blogging elements within the campaign.

The social media campaign should also be able to measure the impact using the unique qualities that indicate success, based on the extremely impressionable Chinese Internet audience.

Creating social media campaigns in China may be trickier due to government red tape and less freedom to express the brand message. However, properly strategised use of social media to increase brand awareness is extremely powerful in China.

For this reason, it is important to adopt your campaign to fit closely with the terms and conditions of whichever SNS you execute it on, and to understand the online behavior of Chinese netizens, in order to be able to listen, monitor, moderate, and engage.

Destination News

Melbourne bureau to appoint China manager

TTG Hub Daily News, May 31, 2010

MELBOURNE Convention and Visitors Bureau (MCVB) plans to expand in China by recruiting a business development manager for the market. Based in Shanghai, the person will report to MCVB’s North Asia regional sales director Jennifer Tung, who is based in Hong Kong.

MCVB CEO, Sandra Chipchase, said the role was created because of demand generated by the bureau’s current activities and from growth opportunities identified in China.

She said: “In 2009, Victoria received 163,000 visitors from China. Expenditure by Chinese visitors increased by 43.9 per cent to A$528 million (US$447.6 million) compared to the previous year.

“Chinese visitors spent 5.2 million visitor nights in Victoria (for the year ending June 2009), representing an increase of 30.9 per cent compared to the previous year. This increase is markedly higher than the national increase of 8.9 per cent, and surpassed our domestic competitors’ performances.”

NZ targets improvements in Chinese tour group experiences

PATA, June 2, 2010

Chinese tourists may now expect better quality group tour experiences following changes to New Zealand’s Approved Destination Status (ADS) programme. A revision of the ADS Code of Conduct, jointly developed by Tourism New Zealand and the Ministry of Tourism, will help address quality issues impacting travel from China and improve the value of this market.

Shopping is one area that will come under increased scrutiny in the new code, with souvenir shops visited by ADS tours requiring a Qualmark endorsement from 1 January 2011.

Tourism New Zealand Chief Executive Kevin Bowler says the satisfaction levels of Chinese visitors have improved since the first Code of Conduct was released in 2007, but average satisfaction levels are still below those of other markets.

“Around half of our Chinese visitors travel here on ADS visas. Many spend just a few days in New Zealand – they go home less satisfied and spend less while they are here,” says Kevin Bowler.

“The way travel is sold in China and the distribution structure around how tours are organised and paid for means that souvenir shops are very influential in the distribution chain.

“Unfortunately this can result in visitors feeling pressured to shop or being exposed to overpriced shopping experiences, which is impacting satisfaction levels among ADS visitors. Qualmark endorsement will help ensure that the ADS programme has some influence and control over the shopping experiences included in ADS tours.”

Under the new code, all transport and activities included in ADS tour itineraries will also need to be Qualmark rated or endorsed. Accommodation providers are already required to be Qualmark rated.

“China offers big opportunities for New Zealand tourism, but we need to improve quality, as well as visitor numbers in order to grow its value to New Zealand’s economy,” says Kevin Bowler.

China is New Zealand’s fourth-largest inbound tourism market, with just over 100,000 visitors in the year to 30 April 2010. Chinese holiday visitors spend a median of three nights in New Zealand and contribute around $3,200 each to New Zealand’s economy (year end March 2010).

The U.S. Department of State announces changes to the U.S. nonimmigrant visa application fee

American Chamber of Commerce Shanghai, June 09, 2010

Non-diplomatic and non-official visas issued by United States consular officers abroad require a visa application fee which covers the costs associated with manufacturing, processing, and printing visas.

Effective June 4, 2010, the current U.S. nonimmigrant visa (NIV) application fee of US$131 will increase. All applicants applying for NIVs in China must pay the non-refundable application fee at designated branches of China CITIC Bank. Both copies of the CITIC Bank fee receipt must be included with your visa application. The application fee is non-refundable regardless of whether your visa is issued. Applicants who have paid the application fee but fail to submit applications within one year will not have their application fee refunded.

NIV application processing fees will increase on June 4, 2010 and will be tiered as shown below. There will no longer be one single visa application fee for all nonimmigrant categories.

Non-petition-based visas, such as the B1/B2 (tourism, business), F1 (student) or J1 (exchange visitor) are now US$140 (RMB 966). Petition-based visas, such as the H (work), L (intra-company transferee), O (extraordinary ability), P (performer), Q (cultural exchange), or R (religious worker) are now US$150 (RMB 1035). K (fiancé/fiancée visas) are now US$350 (RMB 2415).

Hawaii to launch a new MICE website in September; the state looks forward to attracting 60000 Chinese tourists in 2010

www.travelweekly-china.com, June 9, 2010

Hawaii Day for the Expo 2010 Shanghai kicked off on June 8. Hawaii Tourism Authority President and CEO Mike McCartney, said at the opening ceremony that Hawaii is expected to attract 60,000 Chinese tourists this year. It is looking forward to receiving 90,000 Chinese tourists in 2011. Hawaii will put more of a focus on the MICE market in 2010 and 2011. It will launch a new MICE website in September. Hawaii’s Governor Linda Lingle told reporters that Hawaii’s most important strategic target is to open direct flight routes to China.

Asian celebrity Jerry Yan shoots photo album in Australia

www.sohu.com, June 10, 2010

On June 10, Australia Tourism and Asian celebrity Jerry Yan jointly launched a press conference in Beijing, to promote Yan’s new photo album, 9314 Man and Boy, shot in Australia.

Tourism Australia Partners With China Southern Airlines

www.chinahospitalitynews.com.cn, June 11, 2010

Tourism Australia and China Southern Airlines have announced a new partnership agreement to help realize the potential of travel between China and Australia.

US Tourism Roadshow in China in July

AmCham Newsletter, June 21, 2010

The U.S. Commercial Service (CS) is organizing a U.S. Tourism Roadshow in Hangzhou, Nanjing, Hefei, Shenyang, Dalian and Chengdu, China on July14-21, 2010 for U.S. tourism interests; U.S. Convention and Visitors Bureaus, State Tourism Agencies, airlines, hoteliers, tour operators and other tourism suppliers.

The road show is designed to help develop relationships with local tourism authorities and travel agencies, identify potential partners and explore market opportunities in the outbound travel and tourism market in second tier cities of China. The program includes industry briefing by the U.S. Embassy/Consulate, exhibition hours inside of the hotel conference rooms where participants can promote their services or destination and meet executives from local tourism government authorities, major tour operators, MICE intermediaries and major tour media.

The road show offers:

• An opportunity to exhibit and social with qualified outbound travel agencies and tour operators and media.
• An opportunity to meet local and provincial tourism bureau leaders
• Organization and promotion by the U.S. Commercial Service and its cooperators.

Airline/Aircraft News

China Spurs Boeing Orders, But Risks Loom

Reuters, June 2, 2010

Explosive economic growth in China and massive government investment in its
transportation systems will generate thousands of aircraft orders for Boeing,
but it may expose the company to new competition and an overheated economy.

These are risks that Boeing is willing to take as other nations and their struggling airlines recover from an economic downturn.

China has emerged in recent years as an economic pillar and Boeing’s biggest export market. The nation saw its economy expand by nearly 12 percent in the first three months of 2010. Boeing is betting that new Chinese wealth and government spending on infrastructure will bolster travel within China and extend a boom in plane orders for the foreseeable future.

“A growing middle class in China is dramatically reshaping the country’s domestic economy and having a major global economic impact as well,” Boeing chief executive James McNerney said at an event in Chicago on Wednesday. “China is indeed Boeing’s largest export market,” he said. “Not by a little, but by a lot.”

Lan Airlines appoints GSA in Beijing and Shanghai

Asia Travel Tips, June 21, 2010

LAN Airlines, one of the largest airlines in South America, has expanded its sales presence in China, appointing new general sales agents (GSA) in the key cities of Beijing and Shanghai.

The two new appointments take to three the number of GSA companies engaged by LAN in China, with Pro Air International Group already representing the airline in Hong Kong and southern China.

The LAN group of passenger airlines is comprised the long haul international carrier LAN Airlines (formerly LAN Chile), LAN Argentina, LAN Peru, LAN Ecuador and LAN Express. The company operates over 80 Airbus and Boeing aircraft to more than 70 destinations, including over 50 in South America.

LAN’s Senior Sales Manager Asia, Juan Carlos Selman, said China was of enormous importance to LAN, with both commerce and leisure travel increasing to South America.

“The Asia Pacific region is forecast soon to become the world’s biggest and fastest growing air transport market, and China is at the forefront of that growth,” said Mr Selman. “Both China and the nations of South America are experiencing strong economic growth, and trade between these markets is steady and very encouraging … China’s middle class is also growing strongly, with the result that leisure travel from China to destinations including South America is also showing encouraging growth.”

Welcome to Ruder Finn’s travel and tourism newsletter.

With this newsletter, we aim to provide our clients and others in travel and tourism industry with a broad overview of the latest trends and newest regulations related to the Chinese travel and tourism industry.

Over the past 12 years, Ruder Finn China has developed and implemented numerous multi-faceted public relations programs in the travel and tourism sector. Ruder Finn’s work on behalf of international clients includes projects and programs promoting countries, airlines, resorts and major tourist destinations.

Ruder Finn China’s travel and tourism experience, combined with its worldwide track record, offers its clients a combination of truly knowledgeable local and international teams, delivering results that meet their needs and objectives – on time and on budget.

This month, a variety of new trends are shaping the industry:

• A new “400-number” (free of charge) system is now available for tourists who have applied for outbound travel visas. (Travel agencies introduce visa progress checking function)
• China outbound surged 14.5 per cent in the first quarter to 7.71 million, far outstripping an eight per cent growth in inbound travel to 12.86 million. (China outbound grew 14.5% in first quarter)
• A recent poll revealed that 75% of Chinese plan to travel more, and is the only country of all polled to have a majority of respondents (81%) believing their economy will improve in the next year. (75% of Chinese plan to travel more)
• Japan’s Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada has said that new entry requirements for Chinese tourists would make around 16 million Chinese households eligible to apply for visas, roughly 10 times the current level Japan eases restrictions on Chinese business visitors

You will find the full newsletter below. Please don’t hesitate to contact us with your comments and suggestions and please do let me know if you do not wish to receive the newsletter at my email, oliynyks@ruderfinnasia.com or by return email.

Best regards,

Shari Oliynyk

Director, Travel & Tourism

China Travel Industry News

Travel agencies introduce visa progress checking function

Demand and supply imbalance of outbound tourism

Market for travel search engines in China to reach 170 million yuan this year

New edition of Outbound Travel Model Contract Text introduced, indemnity in advance required from travel agencies

Asia Luxury Travel Market 2010 to kick off in Shanghai

Ctrip.com builds largest tourism call center worldwide

China outbound grew 14.5% in first quarter

Tourist complaint validity extended from current 60 days to 90 days

75% of Chinese plan to travel more

Travelport Releases Findings of China Online Travel Survey

eLong.com introduces mobile phone travel reservation services

Taobao.com to enter on-line travel market, challenging Ctrip.com

Qunar.com Launches Air Ticket + Hotel Search Service

Expedia increases on-line travel investment in China, to invest another $50 million

Consumer and Economic News

Chinese cities’ competitiveness stronger in north while weaker in south

Search on mobile phones more convenient than internet

China’s radio, film and television network covering world’s largest population

Destination News

Post Olympics passion, Canadian tourism ready for 2010

British Tourist Authority and Shanghai World Expo British Pavilion Join Hands to Promote UK Tourism on Shanghai Foreign Language Channel

Highlights of World Expo pavilions

‘Australia Unlimited’ announced as nation’s new brand

Japan eases restrictions on Chinese business visitors

Tourism promotion conference for France’s Centre-Val de Loire held in Expo Park

South Africa makes its presence felt in China

U.S. attracting Chinese tourists by lifting travel visa restrictions

Hotel News

Jumeirah reduces dependence on UK/Europe

Global hotel investments surge

Airline News

Dragonair responds to healthy demand for regional destinations

Japan Airlines and China Eastern Airlines expand codeshare pact

China Travel Industry News

Travel agencies introduce visa progress checking fuction

www.travelweekly-china.com, May 5, 2010

A new “400-number” (free of charge) system is now available for tourists who have applied for outbound travel visas. As of today, applicants will be able to check the status of their request by giving their travel time and date of birth.

Demand and supply imbalance of outbound tourism

Beijing Business Today, May 6, 2010

Despite the general economic gloom of 2009, China’s outbound tourism experienced considerable growth. However, travel agencies and enterprises are not fully prepared for the huge market demands, and consequently the outbound tourism market’s supply and demand will remain a problem for some time. Current features of the sector are low coverage in accident insurance and easier visa application processes. Experts urge for standardization in the outbound market. Chinese travel enterprises are strongly advised to focus on intensive development, while foreign invested travel enterprises are recommended to prepare a sound layout before entering into the China market.

Market for travel search engines in China to reach 170 million yuan this year

www.travelweekly-china.com, May 6, 2010

The latest data from market analysis institution EntGroup.cn, the market for travel search engines in China will reach 170 million yuan this year, signalling a 113% growth compared with 2009.

New edition of Outbound Travel Model Contract Text introduced, indemnity in advance required from travel agencies

www.travelweekly-china.com, May 6, 2010

When items purchased by tourists at recommended shopping sites turn out to be fake products, advance-indemnity is required from travel agencies if the products cannot be changed or returned, according to the new edition of the Outbound Travel Model Contract Text printed by the National Tourism Administration of the PRC and State Administration for Industry & Commerce of the PRC.

Asia Luxury Travel Market 2010 to kick off in Shanghai

www.travelweekly-china.com, May 10, 2010

The Asia Luxury Travel Market 2010 will be held in Shanghai, China in Shanghai International Convention Center from June 14 to 17. This is the only B2B exhibition for leading global luxury travel suppliers and the most senior of Asian luxury travel buyers.

Ctrip.com builds largest tourism call center worldwide

www.travelweekly-china.com, May 11, 2010

The Ctrip Information Technology Building, funded by ctrip.com, was finished on May 8 in Nantong, Jiangsu. As the second call center for ctrip.com, the building is currently the largest tourism call center in the world.

China outbound grew 14.5% in first quarter

TTG Asia, May 11, 2010

CHINA outbound surged 14.5 per cent in the first quarter to 7.71 million, far outstripping an eight per cent growth in inbound travel to 12.86 million. The latest figures were reported by China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) vice chairman Zhu Shanzhong, who expects a strong inbound recovery this year – with the World Expo being staged in Shanghai – after last year’s dip of four per cent to a total of 50.88 million visitors.

But while inbound stages a comeback, it is the outbound and domestic travel segments that are expected to remain the rising stars of China tourism. Last year, both sectors saw growths of four per cent to 47.7 million and 11 per cent to 1.9 billion respectively despite setbacks including the global financial crisis, the H1N1 scare and earthquakes.

Tourist complaint validity extended from current 60 days to 90 days

www.travelweekly-china.com, May 21, 2010

The China National Tourism Administration has released the “Processing Methods of Tourist Complaints” to be effective from July 1, 2010. According to the Methods, the validity of tourists’ complaints will be extended from the current 60 days to 90 days. Institutions responsible for the settlement of tourist complaints should handle them within five working days. In addition, the Methods clearly define when and how to use travel agencies’ quality margins as compensation.

75% of Chinese plan to travel more

Marist Poll, May 21, 2010

A first-of-its-kind poll of business travelers from four major economies commissioned by Marriott Hotels & Resorts indicates that 2010 may be shaping up as a year of transition from economic pessimism to greater confidence. The survey polled 1,207 respondents in four countries- the United States, United Kingdom, Germany and China.

The poll revealed that 75% of Chinese plan to travel more, and is the only country of all polled to have a majority of respondents (81%) believing their economy will improve in the next year. Furthermore, in China, only 13% fear job loss in the coming year, although once its economy improves, 66% of Chinese business travellers intend to seek new jobs.

Most responders in all four countries say business travel gives their companies and their careers a competitive edge. More than nine in 10 agree business travel is important to achieve business goals, reaching a high of 96% among the Chinese. Eco-friendly accommodations are considered a necessity by a majority of respondents across all four cultures, but especially in China, where 83% of business travelers indicate a hotel’s sustainability efforts are important.

Travelport Releases Findings of China Online Travel Survey

Travelport Mediaroom, May 21, 2010

Travelport has revealed the findings of an online survey that highlights business and leisure travel trends across 12 countries, including the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The survey on travel behaviour was conducted by independent research firm, The Futures Company, with a sample size of 1,000 plus respondents for each country.

The survey found that PRC business travellers particularly valued products such as seat assignments, hot meals and fast track security, and that a third of respondents preferred group travel. “PRC leisure travellers were champions at thinking ahead and trip planning with more than 40% booking accommodation, insurance, airport transfers, event tickets and attractions all in one go,” said Jeff Clarke, CEO and President, Travelport Limited.

“It is clear from this survey that PRC travellers are looking to purchase a range of services at one time, right down to the detail of additional baggage allowance and even restaurant reservations. Using technology to aggregate travel-specific content that enables travel agents and consumers to book a diversity of travel products will be essential to developing the fast growing travel industry in China along with payment and settlement systems that support the buying process,” Clarke added.

eLong.com introduces mobile phone travel reservation services

www.travelweekly-china.com, May 25, 2010

eLong.com officially introduced mobile phone travel reservation services on May 21. Mobile phone users can enjoy real-time queries for hotels and air ticket booking services after logging onto m.elong.com.

Taobao.com to enter on-line travel market, challenging Ctrip.com

www.travelweekly-china.com, May 26, 2010

On May 18, Ctrip.com released its first quarter financial report, suggesting that its market share in the on-line travel market is as high as 55.6% and the largest in the industry. On May 19, Asia’s largest online retail business Taobao.com immediately announced it would soon be launching “Taobao Travel”.

Qunar.com Launches Air Ticket + Hotel Search Service

www.travelweekly-china.com, May 26, 2010

Qunar.com, the website that originally engaged in air ticket price and comparison search services, has just introduced a hotel search service. The site will invest one third of its R&D resources to develop vacation tours and community products.

Expedia increases on-line travel investment in China, to invest another $50 million

www.travelweekly-china.com, May 31, 2010

The world’s largest on-line travel company Expedia announced on May 26 its plan to pump at least $50 million in to China by the end of 2011 through its website TripAdvisor. At the same time, it will expand its hotel market share and continue acquisitions in China.

Consumer and Economic News

Chinese cities’ competitiveness stronger in north while weaker in south

International Finance News, May 6, 2010

In 2009, subtle changes took place in the competitiveness pattern of Chinese cities while their overall international status improved. The viability of southeastern coastal cities declined while cities in northern and central China experienced rapid improvements. Cities across the nation enjoyed stronger competitiveness and cities with potential developed their own unique features. Finally, the edge of southeastern cities was slightly down, the gap between national cities narrowed; provincial cities’ competitiveness seemed to reverse and rapid development took place in central and western provinces.

Search on mobile phones more convenient than internet

www.travelweekly-china.com, May 13, 2010

According to telecommunications experts, the mobile search application is rapidly becoming a popular way to find information on the go, due to the rapid development of 3G and smart phones in recent years.

China’s radio, film and television network covering world’s largest population

gb.cri.cn, May 25, 2010

The Asia Media Summit 2010 kicked off in Beijing on May 25. During the inauguration, Wang Taihua from China’s State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television, announced that China has developed a radio, film and television network that covers the largest population in the world, and will strive to promote the development of digital broadcasting.

Destination News

Post Olympics passion, Canadian tourism ready for 2010

Tourism, May 2010

According to industry insiders, Canada is expected to become a hot four-season travel destination for Chinese tourists this year, due to the post-Olympics effect and the continuous impact of tourism promotion activities. As another measure to promote Canada tourism, four large Chinese travel agencies were invited to attend the closing ceremony of the Winter Games and engaged in in-depth discussion with Tony Clement, Minister of the Canada Industry Department, on China-Canada tourism relations.

British Tourist Authority and Shanghai World Expo British Pavilion Join Hands to Promote UK Tourism on Shanghai Foreign Language Channel

www.travelweekly-china.com, May 5, 2010

From May 3, 2010, the column “That’s Entertainment”, broadcast with the name of British Tourist Authority and Expo 2010 Shanghai’s British Pavilion, will be broadcast on the Shanghai Foreign Language Channel at 18:45 from Monday to Friday to promote British tourism to Chinese audiences. This is one of the BTA and British Pavilion’s key media campaigns, and will run for the duration of the Expo.

Highlights of World Expo pavilions

San Xiang Metropolis News, May 6, 2010

Between the pavilions of Japan, France and Canada at Expo 2010 Shanghai, Canadian Pavilion is said to be the most interesting. The C-shaped Pavilion was designed and built by Cirque du Soleil. Over 165 dancers, musicians, painters and actors will perform there throughout the duration of the Expo, and the Cirque du Soleil will also provide five celebration performances.

‘Australia Unlimited’ announced as nation’s new brand

ABC Radio Australia News, May 14, 2010

Australia’s Trade Minister, Simon Crean, has announced that the phrase ‘Australia Unlimited’ will be used to promote the country in a fresh drive to attract overseas tourists. The branding exercise was decided on last year and launches at the Expo 2010 Shanghai next week. The government has allocated $US17.9 million to promote it over the next four years.

Japan eases restrictions on Chinese business visitors

Business Traveller, May 19, 2010

Japan is to relax visa conditions for individual Chinese travellers from July 1. Currently Japanese visas have only been issued to individual Chinese tourists, who can show evidence of considerable financial assets, or Chinese citizens who are travelling as part of a group tour. New regulations will allow mid-level corporate and government employees and their families to be granted visas. The Japanese government is keen to expand both business and leisure visits to the country. Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada said that the new entry requirements would make around 16 million Chinese households eligible to apply for the visas, roughly 10 times the current level.

Tourism promotion conference for France’s Centre-Val de Loire held in Expo Park

www.travelweekly-china.com, May 24, 2010

Atout France recently hosted a tourism promotion conference for France’s Centre-Val de Loire took place at the French Pavilion in Expo 2010 Shanghai. The region, recognized as the back garden of France, was introduced to the travel industry, media and the public.

South Africa makes its presence felt in China

TTG Asia Daily News, May 27, 2010

CAPITALISING on World Cup 2010 publicity, South African Tourism has strengthened its presence in China with a dedicated office in Beijing. The NTO relocated from the South African Embassy to its new office in the city’s Sanlitun district on May 24. Marthinus van Schalkwyk, South Africa’s minister of tourism, said: “China is one of our key source markets in Asia. In 2009, we welcomed 45,326 Chinese travellers, up 12.4 per cent compared to the previous year.” Heading the Beijing office is Bradley Brouwer, previously regional manager Asia-Pacific based in Japan. Brouwer said: “In July, we will organise trade workshops in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong.”

U.S. attracting Chinese tourists by lifting travel visa restrictions

21st Century Business Herald, May 31, 2010
The United States is expected to further soften the examination and approval rules for tavel visas from Chinese applicants, as well as expanding the visa scope. According to Roger Dow, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, the visa approval process is expected to be improved and remote video visas might be introduced in the near future if appropriate. Dow also shared that the U.S. plans to attract 600,000 Chinese tourists this year, and hopes for that figure to reach 1 million by 2013.

Hotel News

Jumeirah reduces dependence on UK/Europe

TTG Asia, May 6, 2010

In the last 18 months, the Jumeirah group has opened offices in Singapore, Tokyo, Shanghai and Sydney, an act that has helped change its feeder market composition, 90 per cent of which was Europe (with the UK accounting for 75 per cent and the rest comprising Russia, Germany and other German-speaking markets).

Particularly astounding was the growth from China: during the Chinese Lunar New Year season in February, Chinese packed its Burj Al Arab in Dubai, shifting the mix to 40 per cent China market that month.

Global hotel investments surge

TTG Asia, May 6, 2010

The global hotel investment market surged 53 per cent, with first quarter transaction volumes hitting US$2.8 billion from US$1.8 billion year-on-year, according to Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels. The percentage increase in volumes for Asia-Pacific, including Australia, with transaction volumes reaching US$736 million. The Asia-Pacific tally was split between Asia and Australia, but the Asia-only share was down 23.6 per cent compared to Q1 2009 when volumes were boosted by China and India. Three cities ended March with more than 5,000 rooms in the total active pipeline: Bangkok (9,032 rooms), New Delhi (6,731) and Beijing (5,775).

Airline News

Dragonair responds to healthy demand for regional destinations

Business Traveller, May 25, 2010

Dragonair intends to beef up services to Wuhan and Kaoshiung in July and take delivery of two new Airbus A320s in August to handle increased frequencies due to buoyant demand for regional destinations. It links Hong Kong with 17 destinations on mainland China

http://asia.businesstraveller.com/asia-pacific/news/dragonair

Japan Airlines and China Eastern Airlines expand codeshare pact

Business Traveller, May 28, 2010

Anticipating increased passenger traffic when the Japanese government eases visa restrictions on Chinese nationals from July 1, Japan Airlines (JAL) and China Eastern Airlines (MU) have expanded their codeshare agreement. From June 3, JAL will begin codeshare on seven daily MU-operated flights between Shanghai (Pudong) and three other Chinese cities – Xian, Wuhan and Shenzhen. Furthermore, both airlines agreed to increase the frequency – from four to nine flights daily – on two existing codeshare routes connecting Shanghai with Chengdu and Chongqing. With the expanded codeshare agreement, JAL will have its JL indicator on 16 daily flights operated by MU that links Shanghai with five cities in China. JAL, which currently codeshares with China Eastern on 22 routes between China and Japan, plans to enhance its China domestic network through such partnerships.

Welcome to Ruder Finn’s travel and tourism newsletter.

With this newsletter, we aim to provide our clients and others in travel and tourism industry with a broad overview of the latest trends and newest regulations related to the Chinese travel and tourism industry.

Over the past 12 years, Ruder Finn China has developed and implemented numerous multi-faceted public relations programs in the travel and tourism sector. Ruder Finn’s work on behalf of international clients includes projects and programs promoting countries, airlines, resorts and major tourist destinations.

Ruder Finn China’s travel and tourism experience, combined with its worldwide track record, offers its clients a combination of truly knowledgeable local and international teams, delivering results that meet their needs and objectives – on time and on budget.

This month, a variety of new trends are shaping the industry:

• Hotel booking website HRS.cn has released the most popular travel destinations list for Labor Day, according to guest reservations. (Global reservation network HRS.cn releases most popular travel destinations list before Labor Day)
• The UNWTO’s Interim update for April 2010 has been published, and announced that China overtook France to take fourth position in the ranking of international tourism spenders in 2009. (China overtakes France among top spending tourists)
• Mainland visitors have become the highest spenders in Hong Kong’s tourism industry: (Mainland tourists biggest spenders in HK)
• The number Chinese tourists traveling to Paris reached 600,000 in 2009 (Chinese tourists become main driving force of France’s tourism market)

You will find the full newsletter below. Please don’t hesitate to contact us with your comments and suggestions and please do let me know if you do not wish to receive the newsletter at my email, oliynyks@ruderfinnasia.com or by return email.

Best regards,
Shari Oliynyk
Director, Travel & Tourism

China Travel Industry News

China expected to stimulate world tourism in 2010

China’s outbound tourism welcoming a bull trend with rapid growth

C-trip

Green Book for China Tourism 2010: China’s tourism market in 2010 optimistic

Number of visitors’ pre-registration surges, WTF 2010 to witness visitor volume climax

Global reservation network HRS.cn releases most popular travel destinations list before Labor Day

China overtakes France among top spending tourists

Mainland tourists biggest spenders in HK

Consumer and Economic News

China’s central bank repeats moderately loose monetary policy stance

China claims 240 million online video users

Bankcard Consumer Confidence Index in March at a new high

PBOC decides to stabilize overall price level for first time since last year

Consumers Welcome Ads On Social Networks

Destination News

China becomes largest guest source country of New Zealand

Tourism Australia plans assault on Shanghai World Expo

Chinese tourists’ consumption in UK reaches unprecedented level

Chinese tourists become main driving force of France’s tourism market

NZ campaign targets China tourists

Hotel News

Western China gets its first low carbon resort

Wyndham adds four to Grand Collection line in China

Airline News

Airlines lose competition with China’s high-speed rail

China Eastern to join Sky Team

American Airlines delays launch of Chicago-Beijing flights

China Travel Industry News

China expected to stimulate world tourism in 2010

Hotel Marketing, March 16, 2010

Although the financial crisis of 2009 greatly affected all sectors of the travel industry, the World Travel Trends report released by the ITB predicted a slight recovery from some regions, including a strong boom commencing from China.

IPK International, a world travel research monitor that tracks the trends in outbound travel demand, has stated, “China is very dynamic and is finding it ‘s place in the world. This year’s economic recovery will come from the East to the West.”

In 2010, IPK’s travel research envisions that Chinese outbound travel will bolster a four-percent increase in tourism compared to Europe’s stagnation and a five-percent decrease in the United States.

http://www.hotelmarketing.com/index.php /content/article/ china_expected_to_stimulate_ world_travel_economy_in_2010/

China’s outbound tourism welcoming a bull trend with rapid growth

Beijing Evening News, March 29, 2010

China’s outbound tourism is welcoming a bull trend with rapid growth. China National Tourism Administration’s latest statistics show that from Jan. to Feb. this year, China’s outbound travel figure increased 15%, much higher than in 2009. It is predicted that the figure in 2010 will reach 54 million. An industry insider said that China’s outbound tourism is expected to enter a new round of fast development, as the residents’ travel consumption demand increases, the environment of outbound tourism is further optimized and the global tourism industry slowly warms up again.

www.ctrip.com launches Overseas Travel Carnival to attract largest domestic outbound travel source market

www.travelweekly-china.com, April 20, 2010

www.ctrip.com has joined hands with over 20 outbound travel agencies from the U.S., Europe, Australia, Africa, Japan, Korea and others to launch the “Overseas Travel Carnival” tour show, targeting the Yangtze River Delta, China’s largest domestic outbound travel source market, and to promote this year’s new outbound travel destinations and products.

http://www.travelweekly-china.com/Article/ Ctrip_Overseas_Travel_Carnival_fight_the 
nation_s_largest_outbound_travel_market.html

Green Book for China Tourism 2010: China’s tourism market in 2010 optimistic

China Hospitality News, April 21, 2010

The Tourism Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences has published the China’s Tourism Development Analysis and Forecast 2010, aka ‘Tourism Green Paper 2010’.

The reports cover inbound, outbound and domestic tourism markets; scenic spots; travel agencies and hotels; hot topics such as regional tourism development and the issuance of regulations on travel agencies; and development of Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan tourism. This year, two special sections were added; analysis of the impact of the global financial crisis on China’s tourism industry and a commentary on innovative enterprises and measures in the industry.

According to the green paper, the main factors affecting global tourism development in 2009 were the financial crisis and the H1N1 swine flu scare. In 2009, China’s tourism industry saw a decline in inbound tourism, growth in outbound tourism and considerable growth in domestic tourism due to policies to stimulate domestic demand which resulted in a revenue growth of 15%.

Predictions for the industry in 2010 are greater growth as a result of improvements in the external environment and adjustment of tourism policies. In general, all sectors are expected to grow; new business models such as cruises, timeshares, and exhibitions and conventions will see faster development; formulation of a tourism basic law will progress and reform of tourism administration mechanisms will also accelerate.

http://www.chinahospitalitynews.com/en/ 2010/04/21/ 16027-china-releases- tourism-green-paper-for-2010/

Number of visitors’ pre-registration surges, WTF 2010 to witness visitor volume climax

www.travelweekly-china.com, April 22, 2010

The World Travel Fair 2010 (WTF 2010) will be staged during the Expo 2010 Shanghai, from May 27 to 29. Leveraging the 70 million guest source, WTF 2010 will lead domestic and overseas exhibitors to embrace the tourism peak so as to encourage business opportunities and numbers of tourists.

http://www.travelweekly-china.com/ Article/ Pre_registration_surge_in_the_number_ of_visitors_exhibitors_orgasm_detonated_WTF2010.html

Global reservation network HRS.cn releases most popular travel destinations list before Labor Day

www.travel-weeklychina.com.cn, April 23, 2010

Hotel booking website HRS.cn has released the most popular travel destinations list for Labor Day, according to guest reservations. The top ten are: Shanghai, Paris, Hong Kong, Beijing, Munich, Milan, Venice, Bali, London and the Maldives.

China overtakes France among top spending tourists

UNWTO, April 28, 2010

The UNWTO’s Interim update for April 2010 has been published, and announced that China overtook France to take fourth position in the ranking of international tourism spenders in 2009. Chinese expenditure on international tourism has been the fastest to grow in the last decade, up from seventh position only in 2005. Even during last year’s crisis, tourism expenditure by China increased by 21%.

http://www.unwto.org/media/news/en/press_det.php?id=5912&idioma=E

Mainland tourists biggest spenders in HK

Marketing Daily HK, April 28, 2010

Mainland visitors have become the highest spenders for inbound tourism contributing HK$83.5 billion or close to 70% of Hong Kong’s total visitor spending, according to figures from the Hong Kong Tourism Board.

Consumer and Economic News

China’s central bank repeats moderately loose monetary policy stance

The Beijing News, April 1, 2010

The monetary policy committee of People’s Bank of China (PBOC), the central bank, reaffirmed Wednesday that China would maintain its moderately loose monetary policy and enhance financial support to back the sustainability of economic development.

http://clipping.cn/tr_Canada/clippingDetail.asp?cid=5413623

China claims 240 million online video users

www.media.asia, April 8, 2010

The number of Chinese netizens watching online videos reached 240 million by the end of 2009 according to the China Internet Network Information Center’s (CNNIC) latest report, up from the 222 million reported at the end of 2008. CNNIC found that of those polled nearly 67 per cent spent less time watching television, and nearly 24 per cent barely watch TV anymore. Overall, 57 per cent rely more on the internet than TV, and 48 per cent watched online videos every day. China currently has more than 380 million internet users, which is approximately 28 per cent of its total population.

http://www.media.asia/searcharticle/ China-claims-240-million-online-video-users/ 2008/39464?src=related

Bankcard Consumer Confidence Index in March at a new high

China Securities News, April 10, 2010

On April 9, Xinhua News Agency and China UnionPay jointly released the Bankcard Consumer Confidence Index for March 2010. The BCCI rose 1.62 points to a record 86.89 in March, 0.26 higher than in February. The readings indicate that China’s bank card holders had maintained their optimistic economic outlook, which boosted confidence in consumption, said the index report.

http://clipping.cn/tr_Canada/clippingDetail.asp?cid=5433526

PBOC decides to stabilize overall price level for first time since last year

China Securities Journal, April 24, 2010

On April 23, the People’s Bank of China issued “China’s Macroeconomic Situation in Q1 2010″ report, according to which, China should continue to strengthen liquidity management, maintain appropriate growth of monetary credit, strive to stabilize the overall price level and seek a balance among maintaining steady and rapid economic development, economic restructuring and administrating inflation expectations in the next stage. This is the first time for the central bank to decide to stabilize the overall price level since economic stimulus policies were implemented last year.

http://clipping.cn/tr_Canada/clippingDetail.asp?cid=5465045

Consumers Welcome Ads on Social Networks

Marketing Interactive, April 28, 2010

Advertising on social networking sites (SNS) has a positive impact on consumer’s opinion and attitude towards the brands, a survey by Millward Brown found.

77% of social network users in China believe that a brand is more appealing if it has a presence on social networking sites, and over half of them said that they have searched these brands or visited their websites after seeing the ads on SNS.

http://www.marketing-interactive.com/news/19320

Destination News

China becomes largest guest source country of New Zealand

www.xinhuanet.com, April 15, 2010

As of the end of February in 2010, Chinese citizens traveling to New Zealand reached 10,000, with an increase of 40% in Feb compared with the same period last year. China has become the largest guest source country of New Zealand, apart from Australia, the U.S. and Britain, who share the same language and culture with New Zealand.

Tourism Australia plans assault on Shanghai World Expo

Dynamic Business, April 16, 2010

Tourism Australia plans to showcase Australia’s credentials as a business events destination to corporate end users at Expo 2010. It’s Managing Director, Andrew McEvoy, sees Shanghai World Expo as a significant opportunity for Australia.

“Asia’s rebounding economy is creating new prospects for Australian business events operators and events such as TABEE and Expo 2010 offer an invaluable stage to meet face-to-face with potential buyers,” Mr McEvoy said.

http://www.dynamicbusiness.com.au/articles/articles-export/ tourism-australia-shanghai-world-expo-1366.html

Chinese tourists’ consumption in UK reaches unprecedented level

Travel Weekly China, April 18, 2010

According to the British Tourist Authority, 2009 saw the number of tourists from mainland China traveling to the UK and their levels of consumption in the UK reach unprecedented levels. Britain’s major high-end stores all benefited from this, and are grateful for their Chinese guests’ continuous consumption, which has greatly compensated for declining sales caused by the economic downturn.

http://www.travelweekly-china.com/Article/ Chinese_tourists_in_the_UK_amounted_
to_an_unprecedented_level_of_consumer.html

Chinese tourists become main driving force of France’s tourism market

China Business Times, April 20, 2010

According to the website of the Ministry of Commerce, despite the economic crisis’ negative impact on the global tourism market, the number Chinese tourists traveling to Paris reached 600,000 in 2009, among which half were from mainland China, while the other half came from the Hong Kong and Taiwan regions.

http://www.travelweekly-china.com/Article/ Chinese_tourists_in_the_UK_ amounted_to_an_unprecedented_level_of_consumer.html

NZ campaign targets China tourists

PATA, April 21, 2010

A new marketing campaign in China is using ‘star power’ to boost New Zealand’s profile as a tourism destination. Tourism New Zealand has teamed up with two big names in Chinese entertainment – movie director Lu Chuan and media personality/celebrity blogger Hung Huang – to promote New Zealand to Chinese travellers. Tourism New Zealand Chief Executive Kevin Bowler says the campaign will make use of online communities and interactive digital technology to take New Zealand to the right audiences in this fast-growing market.

Hotel News

Western China gets its first low carbon resort

Global Times, April 13, 2010

The foundations have been laid for Lijiang Tianlu, a high-end tourism resort project developed by Lijiang Jinlin Property Investment Company in Lijiang, Yunnan.

Major components of the Lijiang Tianlu project are an international convention center and a five-star hotel. The project features a total floor area of 250,000 square meters, of which the international convention center will occupy 50,000 square meters.

As the first low carbon tourism resort project in western China, the focus will be on energy conservation, environmental protection and intelligent use of resources and the harmony between buildings and the environment will be the highlight of the project.

http://life.globaltimes.cn/travel/2010-04/521659.html

Wyndham adds four to Grand Collection line in China

TTG Daily News, April 19, 2010

WYNDHAM Hotel Group has clinched deals for another four hotels under its Wyndham Grand Collection brand in China following the recent addition of properties in Shanghai, Changsha and Hangzhou.

The newcomers are a 420-room hotel in Chengdu, a 311-room property in Suzhou, a 374-key property in Kunming and a 321-room hotel in Shanghai.

The Wyndham Grand Plaza Royale Palace Chengdu will be the first off the block, opening in late spring this year. It will have 12 meeting rooms to accommodate up to 800 people, three restaurants and a cigar and wine bar.

The Collection brand is one of several operated by the group in China. The group has 207 hotels representing 33,336 rooms under the Wyndham, Ramada, Howard Johnson, Days Inn and Super 8 brands on the mainland.

Airline News

Airlines lose competition with China’s high-speed rail

eTravel Blackboard, March 31, 2010

The new express train travels between Zhengzhou and Xian, running at a top speed of 350 km per hour and cutting the travel time between the two cities from more than six hours to less than two.

Before the high-speed link launched, domestic airline Joy Air, which flew on the route generally sold, on average, more than 60 percent of seats. Soon all airlines flying within China will face this problem as the Chinese government continues to spend billions of dollars on a network of high-speed railways.

By 2012, China will have more than 13,000 km of high-speed railway, affecting airline carriers which currently profit from the country’s large size and slow roads and trains. The network will include the route from Beijing to the country’s financial capital Shanghai.

“By then, 60 percent of China’s domestic air market will be affected by the high-speed railways,” Liu Chaoyong, general manager of China Eastern told Xinhua.

http://www.etravelblackboardasia.com/article.asp?id=67856

China Eastern to join Sky Team

Sky Team, April 16, 2010

China Eastern Airlines today announced its intention to join the SkyTeam Airline Alliance. During an official ceremony in Shanghai, China Eastern President and Chief Executive Officer Ma Xulun joined the CEOs of SkyTeam member airlines to sign a Memorandum of Understanding confirming China Eastern’s plans to join the SkyTeam Alliance by mid-2011. With China Eastern as a partner, SkyTeam passengers will benefit from improved access to SkyTeam’s extensive Chinese domestic network.

http://www.skyteam.com/news/headlines/20100416.html

American Airlines delays launch of Chicago-Beijing flights

TTGAsia Daily News, April 27, 2010

A lack of commercially-viable landing and take-off slots at Beijing Capital International Airport from the Chinese authorities has put a damper on American Airlines’ launch of daily nonstop services between Chicago and Beijing. In a press statement, the carrier said the services, originally scheduled to launch today, will be delayed tentatively until May 4.
It said: “Until American receives viable operating slots, we will not be able to fly between Chicago and Beijing and thus cannot deliver air transportation services to the American and Chinese people. We are… hopeful that the slot issue can be resolved by that time.”
Meanwhile, American Airlines is rebooking customers on other flights to assist them in getting to their destination, offering full refunds or the opportunity to travel at a later date.

With this newsletter, we aim to provide our clients and others in travel and tourism industry with a broad overview of the latest trends and newest regulations related to the Chinese travel and tourism industry.

Over the past 12 years, Ruder Finn China has developed and implemented numerous multi-faceted public relations programs in the travel and tourism sector. Ruder Finn’s work on behalf of international clients includes projects and programs promoting countries, airlines, resorts and major tourist destinations.

Ruder Finn China’s travel and tourism experience, combined with its worldwide track record, offers its clients a combination of truly knowledgeable local and international teams, delivering results that meet their needs and objectives – on time and on budget.

This month, a variety of new trends are shaping the industry:

• China’s online travel booking users in 2009 reached 30.24 million, increasing 77.9 percent from the previous year, according to a report released recently by China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC). (Online travel booking users exceeds 30 million in China)
• In 2009, more than 47.5 million Chinese travelled across the border, an increase of 4% compared to 2008. Social media is an increasingly important tool to reach the younger, affluent and techno-savvy Chinese. (ChinaTravelTrends.com, new interactive platform for China outbound tourism)
• China Tourism Academy estimates as many as 54 million tourists will go abroad this year, up from 47 million in 2009. (Number of outbound tourists soaring)

You will find the full newsletter below. Please don’t hesitate to contact us with your comments and suggestions and please do let me know if you do not wish to receive the newsletter at my email, oliynyks@ruderfinnasia.com or by return email.

Best regards,
Shari Oliynyk
Director, Travel & Tourism

China Travel Industry News

Chinese spend Spring Festival overseas and show their spending power

Online travel booking users exceeds 30 million in China

ChinaTravelTrends.com, new interactive platform for China outbound tourism

Number of outbound tourists soaring

Consumer and Economic News

China Can Cap 2010 Consumer Price Index at 3%, Chen Dongqi Says

Destination News

Number of Chinese citizens to U.S. to reach one million in five years

Team Australia Business Events Educational held in Beijing

Burj Khalifa, malls and beaches entice Chinese tourists

‘Real America’ opens its doors to big spending Chinese tourists

Hotel News

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Opens Its 1000th Hotel- in Qiandao, China

Cautious Optimism and Focus on Domestic Tourism at the China Hotel Development and Financing Conference 2010

Airline News

Transaero to Launch Direct Moscow-Beijing Route in June

Beijing, China Joins Emirates A380 ‘Capital Club’

Air China to Launch Premium Economy on Domestic Routes

Other News

Chongqing to Build 20 Luxury Cruise Ships

China Travel Industry News

Chinese spend Spring Festival overseas and show their spending power

China Information News, March 1, 2010

That “Chinese Spring Festival is a business opportunity” has practically become a world consensus. In this past golden week, Chinese people’s spending power forced other countries to recognize the significance of Spring Festival to them. The latest statistics from China Union Pay released on the 20th show that from Feb.13 to 19, the domestic cross-bank bankcard transactions reached 56.9 billion yuan, with an increase of 47% and 25% respectively, and the overseas cards transaction amount increased by nearly 80%.

Onlinetravel booking users exceeds 30 million in China

Travel Daily News, March 12, 2010

China’s online travel booking users in 2009 reached 30.24 million, increasing 77.9 percent from the previous year, according to a report released recently by China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC). Ctrip, the one-stop China travel service, also says its number of members has reached 30 million.

The growth rate of 77.9 is second only to online payment (80.9 percent) and exceeds online stock trading (67 percent), online banking (62.3 percent) and online shopping (45.9 percent).

As of December 30, China’s web users has reached 384 million, Internet penetration rate has amounted to 28.9 percent and online travel booking rate has reached 7.9 percent. It is believed that there is huge potential for the development of online travel booking.

ChinaTravelTrends.com,new interactive platform for China outbound tourism

Travel Daily News, March 15, 2010

With more than 50 million outbound travellers expected to leave China in 2010, the Chinese outbound market is attracting more and more attention of destinations around the world. In step with the Chinese economic miracle, China has built a tourism infrastructure from scratch, which now handles close to 2 billion domestic trips and is more and more embracing outbound travel.

The Chinese Outbound market is one of the few source markets which continued to grow even during the global economic crisis. In 2009, more than 47.5 million Chinese travelled across the border, an increase of 4% compared to 2008. The Chinese government has recently declared it will give more support to the growth of outbound tourism in the future with at least 9% more outbound travellers planned every year.

With growing choice and sophistication of the Chinese travellers, destinations and companies have to use up-to-date communication to get the attention and capture imagination of these high-spending customers.

Social media is increasingly important especially for the younger, affluent and techno-savvy Chinese. Word of Mouth and Word of Mouse are key elements of reaching this crucial segment of the Chinese outbound market. It is also an excellent barometer of the rapidly evolving consumer trends and interests that are relevant for destinations seeking to attract a greater share of this market.

Numberof outbound tourists soaring

China Daily, March 29, 2010

China Tourism Academy estimates as many as 54 million tourists will go abroad this year, up from 47 million in 2009, reports Yu Tianyu from Beijing.

According to the United Nations World Tourism Organization, China will be the world’s fourth-largest source of outbound tourists by 2020, with 100 million overseas visits.

A report by AC Nielson showed that Asian countries were the top choice for Chinese tourists with more than 60 percent of respondents favoring the destination. The region’s popularity was followed by Europe and Oceania.

According to statistics from travel search engine Qunar.com, top destinations for travelers departing from Beijing were Hong Kong, Tokyo, Seoul, Singapore, Bangkok, New York, Paris, Kuala Lumpur, London and Sydney.

Ma Nan, marketing manager of Beijing UTS International Travel Service Co Ltd, said his company was expecting a 20 percent rise this year in tourists visiting South Africa, Egypt, Japan, the US and island countries in Southeast Asia, despite a possible 5 percent year-on-year rise in prices.

Consumer and Economic News

ChinaCan Cap 2010 Consumer Price Index at 3%, Chen Dongqi Says

Business Week, March 29, 2010

China’s 2010 inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index, is “controllable” in the near term and can be capped at 3 percent, said the deputy research director of the country’s planning ministry.

China’s economic growth is likely to be about 10 percent this year, Chen Dongqi said today at a conference in Beijing. The country is unlikely to see a so-called double-dip recession, he said.

Destination News

Numberof Chinese citizens to U.S. to reach one million in five years

China Trade News, March 2, 2010

U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Michael Kirby said the expected growth rate of yearly visa applications in China for travel to the United States is expected to be 16% to 20% or 1 million people in 5 years.

TeamAustralia Business Events Educational held in Beijing

www.travelweekly-china.com, March 19, 2010

The three day Team Australia Business Events Educational (TABEE) was held in Beijing from March 15 to 17. TABEE is the largest M.I.C.E event organized by Tourism Australia in Asia and a key measure to promote the rich and diverse M.I.C.E resources in Australia to the Asia market in the next 12 months.

BurjKhalifa, malls and beaches entice Chinese tourists

The National, March 28, 2010

So many Chinese tourists are visiting Dubai that Jumeirah Beach is beginning to resemble a Chinese beach resort.

Chinese tourism officials say Dubai is rapidly becoming a favourite destination for travellers, who are taking advantage of their healthy economy and better deals on package tours.

About 150,000 Chinese tourists visited Dubai in 2009, according to the Beijing office of Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM). The year before, Dubai hosted 96,300 Chinese hotel guests, indicating a 55.8 per cent rise in Chinese visitors in one year.

“The number of tourists to Dubai is growing rapidly,” said Ivy Gao, a senior executive at the DTCM office who has been to the UAE four times. She expects an increase this year of 15 to 20 per cent.

Tourist numbers have jumped since September, when the UAE secured “approved destination status” in China, which meant agencies could advertise the Emirates and send tour groups.

This year, the DTCM plans to extend promotional activities to about 10 “second-tier” Chinese cities. Until now, it has focused on Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, in which it opened offices in 2008.

A four-day, three-night tour to the UAE costs about 5,000 yuan (Dh2,690) with airfare. The Chinese tourists’ trips often include legs in Turkey, Egypt or the Maldives.

Within the UAE, the typical itinerary features a night in the Burj al Arab, two nights in a four-star hotel, a desert safari and a trip to Abu Dhabi.

‘Real America’opens its doors to big spending Chinese tourists

CNNGo, 31 March, 2010

California, Hawaii and Vegas are old news; it’s American states that have traditionally been off the beaten path for Chinese visitors that are the new tourist hot spots.

As the number of Chinese visiting the United States skyrockets — it’s expected to jump 15 percent to 556,000 this year and exceed 800,000 by 2013, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce — it’s not just the tried and true destinations of California, Las Vegas, Hawaii and New York that are welcoming the tour busses. Despite budget cuts, state tourism boards across the country are making an eager push to woo Chinese tourists, rolling out lists of initiatives to show these savvy travelers why their corners of the map deserve a visit.

According to the UN World Tourism Organization, there will be 100 million Chinese international travelers by 2020. Chinese travelers spend more than their counterparts in any other country — about $7,200 per person per trip, according to the U.S. Commerce Department. This month, President Obama signed the Travel Promotion Act, which will establish a national tourism board to encourage foreigners to visit the United States.

In April, the National Tour Association will open a Visit USA Center in Shanghai. The center will provide information on travel tour packages, destinations and tour operators, and will offer a facility for U.S. companies to use when in Shanghai to expand travel and tourism business opportunities.

Hotel News

StarwoodHotels & Resorts Opens Its 1000th Hotel- in Qiandao, China

Market Watch, March 31, 2010

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide announced today that the company has reached an important milestone in its history, opening its 1000th hotel and resort. Starwood’s 1000th hotel, which debuts today, is the Sheraton Qiandao Lake Resort located on the shores of China’s famed Qiandao Lake, also, aptly known as the Lake of Thousand Islands.

“We are delighted to welcome our 1000th hotel, and the fact that it is a Sheraton in China seems pre-destined,” said Frits van Paasschen, President and CEO of Starwood. “This hotel is emblematic of both our history and our bright future. As Starwood’s largest and most global brand, Sheraton provided us early footholds in emerging markets, including China in the early 1980s when we were the first international hotel there. Today, Starwood is the world’s most global hotel company — with plans to open 300 hotels in the next three to four years — and for the first time we have more hotels outside the U.S. than inside. And there is no more fertile ground to grow than in China where we plan to double our footprint to 100 hotels by 2012.”

CautiousOptimism and Focus on Domestic Tourism at the China Hotel Development and Financing Conference 2010

www.etbmice.com, April 1, 2010

After a very challenging 2009, hotel industry experts expressed a more optimistic outlook for 2010, particularly with regards to occupancy growth. There was, however, much caution as significant amount of new supply is expected to enter several key markets, such as Beijing, Shanghai and Hangzhou. Cities such as Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Sanya continue to offer glimmers of hope for the industry.

According to leaders of major international hotel management companies at the conference, strong performances of hotels in the first quarter of 2010 have boosted confidence in that market recovery is on its way. Cost control, staff efficiency and training remain top priorities of the industry as companies seize the opportunity to review operations of existing properties. New opportunities for hotel development, on the other hand, were identified in cities located close to and suburbs of key cities, with appropriate brand placement a focus for the hotel management companies. There was much interest surrounding large-scale resort development. The government-backed development of Hainan Island into an international tourism island proved to be a hot topic at the conference.

Based on analysis by the China International Capital Corporation Limited (CICC), 3 key trends will emerge in the Chinese market in the next 5 to 10 years. The currently export driven economy will shift to focus on the domestic market, as domestic disposable income increases amidst a relatively weaker global environment. As corporations move inland to explore cost efficiencies, central and western cities will become stronger economic drivers in comparison to coastal cities. The service industry will continue to gain increasing importance in economic development, over the manufacturing industry. 2009 was the first year in history when net imports surpassed exports in the country.

Airline News

Transaeroto Launch Direct Moscow-Beijing Route in June

China Hospitality News, March 5, 2010

Russian Transaero Airlines has announced that plans launch a direct air route from Moscow to Beijing starting from June 4, 2010.

Flights UN865/866 will be scheduled on Tuesdays and Fridays. Transaero says that the flights will have Chinese-speakers on their cabin crew and meals will cater to both Chinese and Russian tastes.

Beijing,China Joins Emirates A380 ‘Capital Club’

Odyssey Media Group, March 15, 2010

The world’s most populous country, China, will fittingly receive the aviation world’s largest commercial aircraft with the start of Emirates A380 Dubai-Beijing-Dubai services on 1st August 2010.

The new service signals the first A380 operation to China, and follows an impressive series of A380-firsts to New Zealand, Thailand and Korea by the Dubai-based airline.

The 517-seater A380 will be deployed on the existing EK 306 service that departs Dubai daily at 04:10 hrs, touching down in the Chinese capital city at 15:10 hrs. Return flight EK 307 takes off from Beijing Capital International Airport at 23:55 hrs, landing at Terminal 3, Dubai International Airport at 04:20 hrs the following day.

AirChina To Launch Premium Economy On Domestic Routes

Air China, March 22, 2010

Air China has announced plans to launch a Premium Economy class on selected domestic routes in the near future. Premium Economy class will be available on new Airbus A330-300s and will offer each passenger 10cm more width than Economy class and an individual entertainment system. Air China will be the first domestic airline to offer this service. Premium Economy will initially be available on domestic flights for business travellers such as the Beijing- Shanghai and Beijing- Guangzhou routes.

Over the coming years, Air China plans to purchase 23 Airbus A330-300 aircraft with Premium Economy seating. A330-300 aircraft have 311 seats, with 20 seats in the first three rows of the economy cabin reserved for Premium Economy passengers. The space between each row measures 92 centimeters, providing comfort comparable to first class seats found in normal, narrow-body aircraft.

Other News

Chongqingto Build 20 Luxury Cruise Ships

China Hospitality News, March 10, 2010

Tan Xiwei, the deputy mayor of Chongqing, said during a recent interview that Chongqing will have 20 luxury cruise ships in three years and will develop them as a tourist destination on the Three Gorges.

According to Tan there are currently 14 five-star luxury cruise ships in Chongqing, and they are more popular than ordinary ones. This shows the demand for cruises from tourists are changing from the former sightseeing only to the current combination of leisure and sightseeing. Luxury cruises have a better added value than ordinary sightseeing cruises.

The new luxury cruise ships will have entertainment venues, supermarkets, swimming pools, and other service facilities. It is expected that there will be as least a million outbound tourists and five million domestic tourists each year taking a cruise to visit the Three Gorges.

With this newsletter, we aim to provide our clients and others in travel and tourism industry with a broad overview of the latest trends and newest regulations related to the Chinese travel and tourism industry.

Over the past 12 years, Ruder Finn China has developed and implemented numerous multi-faceted public relations programs in the travel and tourism sector. Ruder Finn’s work on behalf of international clients includes projects and programs promoting countries, airlines, resorts and major tourist destinations.

Ruder Finn China’s travel and tourism experience, combined with its worldwide track record, offers its clients a combination of truly knowledgeable local and international teams, delivering results that meet their needs and objectives – on time and on budget.

This month, a variety of new trends are shaping the industry

• Data from search engine, Google, reported a strong growth in travel queries this year, with a 21% increase in January 2010, compared to only a 9% increase at the same time last year. The data also shows that growth rates for luxury travel searches have caught up with budget travel terms in the past year. (Exclusive: Google sees travel searches surge 21%)
• Ctrip.com reported Beijing as the top destination in China, citing it as the leading tourist arrival city in a list of 10. Xiamen and Sanya also made it on the list, both showing significant increases in the number of tourists during Spring Festival. (Golden Week’s top 10 destinations)
• According to the National Tourism Administration (NTA), China’s tourism revenue rose 26.9 percent during Spring Festival, increasing its revenue amount to 64.62 billion Yuan. The study also showed that among those that traveled during this holiday, an overwhelming majority of the tourists stayed less than one day at their destination. (China tourism revenue up 26.9% during Spring Festival holiday period)
• Data from the Ministry of Public Security reported that Chinese mainlanders made 20.8 percent more outbound trips this Spring Festival than the year before, growing to almost 2.4 million entries and exits during the one-week period. (More Chinese mainlanders travel for New Year holiday: ministry)

You will find the full newsletter below. Please don’t hesitate to contact us with your comments and suggestions and please do let me know if you do not wish to receive the newsletter at my email, oliynyks@ruderfinnasia.com or by return email.

Best regards,
Shari Oliynyk
Director, Travel & Tourism

China Travel Industry News

China’s new travelers aren’t far from home

Exclusive: Google sees travel searches surge 21%

Over 1 in 3 urban Chinese willing to travel during Festival

Golden Week’s top 10 destinations

China tourism revenue up 26.9% during Spring Festival holiday period

More Chinese mainlanders travel for New Year holiday: ministry

Japanese stores eye Chinese tourists

Tour package targets Chinese, Japanese

Honeymoon market in China eyed

Spring Festival boosts tourism revenue

China’s tourism revenues to hit RMB 1.44 trln

China Consumer and Economic News

Skyscanner Reveals the World’s Biggest Spenders: Tourists Who Splash the Cash

Approved Destination News

Nigeria willing to enhance tourism co-op with China

Increase to and fro visitors to boost ties, China tells India

Fiji Using Tropical Allure To Lure Chinese Tourists

Airlines News

China to snare 14 new flights at Narita

SAS Announces Better Connections From China To Northern Europe

China’s Airport Authorities Suggest Seven Day Transit Period

China And Australia Sign New Air Services Agreement

ANA To Increase Flights To China In 2010

Hotel News

Sol Melia Opens Its First Luxury Hotel In China

Antaeus Group Set To Build First Casino Hotel In China

Frasers To Soft Open Modena Brand In Tianjin

Other News

Meetings Go Green In Post-Copenhagen China

China Travel Industry News

China’s new travelers aren’t far from home

New York Times, February 1, 2010

JIUZHAIGOU, CHINA

Each day, tens of thousands of Chinese tourists board buses to visit the pine forests and mock-ethnic villages of Jiuzhaigou, a Unesco World Heritage Site. These sightseers, clad in Gore-Tex and Gucci, are fueling a boom in China’s domestic travel sector. Spurred by a mix of middle-class money, government support and interest in rediscovering China, the market is beating predictions and bucking global trends.

While the industry lost ground in Europe and the United States, China’s tourism sector posted a 9 percent jump in revenue 2009, to 1.26 trillion RenMinBi, thanks to domestic demand.

In 2010, total tourism revenue is expected to rise 14 percent, totaling 1.44 trillion RenMinBi, according to figures released Jan. 24 in state media reports.

Though Chinese people have been on the move for centuries — as explorers, migrants and traders — leisure travel is relatively new to the People’s Republic. The post-Mao era afforded little time for holidays, and for most, money was scarce. The state regulated travel between provinces, so would-be wanderers needed papers and permission, in addition to cash.

As China’s economy began to gain momentum in the 1990s, the travel industry benefited. The number of domestic trips jumped 54 percent from 1996 to 2006, according to figures released by the China National Tourism Administration.

Higher incomes have driven up leisure travel, but the government has helped, too. As average incomes climbed, the state eased travel restrictions and increased the number of mandatory public holidays to 11 to drive demand.

Since 1999, Chinese workers have enjoyed “golden weeks,” a set of mandatory national holidays. There are now two per year, one held in autumn and one in winter.

The purpose is to get people spending — a strategy that seems to be working. During the National Day Golden Week holidays from Oct. 1 to Oct. 8 last year, 19.6 million tourists visited Sichuan Province alone, generating 7.7 billion RenMinBi in revenue, according to state media.

The National Tourism Administration said domestic tourists had made 1.9 billion trips in 2009, an increase of 11 percent over the previous year, and generated 1 trillion

Leading the spending spree are China’s young urbanites. Overworked, wealthy and worldly, they have the means to travel and the desire to get away from city life.

Exclusive: Google sees travel searches surge 21%

Traveloution, February 5, 2010

Google has seen stronger growth in travel searches in January 2010 compared to January 2009, the search engine reporting a 21% increase in queries and a 7% increase in clicks.

Travel queries in January 2009 saw only a 9% increase year-on-year.

Cost-per-click rates on travel keywords fell in 2009 with average CPCs now 7% less than this time last year following three years of CPC inflation.

Travel queries for 2009 were up 16% on the previous year with car hire showing the strongest growth of 25% followed by hotels at 19%.

The search giant has also reported branded holiday queries such as ‘Thomas Cook holidays in Turkey’ are growing at double the rate of non-branded.

The trend demonstrates how consumers are looking for the reassurance and security of long-standing brands when looking to spend their holiday money.

Growth rates for luxury travel queries have caught up with budget travel terms in the past year, according to the figures.

At the beginning of 2009, due to the economic downturn, queries for budget travel such as ‘no frills airlines’ and ‘all-inclusive holidays’ grew more quickly than searches for premium products.

The average length of queries, in terms of numbers of words, is increasing with consumers becoming more sophisticated and entering long tail queries.

Over 1 in 3 urban Chinese willing to travel during Festival

Xinhua, February 9, 2010

BEIJING: More than one third of Chinese urban residents are willing to travel during the upcoming Spring Festival vacations, according to a sampling survey.

The survey, released on Monday, was jointly conducted by Media Survey Lab of Tsinghua University and China Tourism Academy (CTA), a tourism research institute under the National Tourism Administration. Samples were collected by telephone interviews and online survey, and there were a total of 2,695 effective respondents in the survey.

Previous statistics revealed that urban residents in big cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, and those in east part of China including Shandong and Jiangsu Provinces travelled more than people in other areas, the CTA told Xinhua Monday.

So samples of the survey covered more residents from such areas, the CTA said.

The survey also showed that people with monthly income of 5,000 Yuan and people over 35 years of age are more likely to take a trip during the vacation.

However, there are still 32.2 percent of the respondents said they will not travel around during the Festival and the rest of the respondents said they had not made decision yet.

Golden Week’s top 10 destinations

China Economic Review, February 23, 2010

February 23, 2010: The first tourism Golden Week holiday in the Year of the Tiger in celebration of the Spring Festival has just ended. Beijing led as a destination.

Beijing was ranked first in the list of top 10 tourist arrival cities in China, according to Ctrip.com, a leading travel portal in China.

The top 10 tourist arrival cities were Beijing, Hong Kong, Sanya, Xiamen, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Hangzhou and Nanjing. These cities generally are established tourism destinations: have beautiful natural scenery, convenient shopping and well-developed tourism-supporting facilities.

Xiamen and Sanya have both seen a marked increase in number of tourists this Spring Festival. The hotel prices in Sanya have shot up while the hotel occupancy rate has reached 90% in Xiamen.

What’s On Xiamen reported that Ctrip.com listed the top 10 outbound tourist destinations during the Golden Week holiday, which were Hong Kong, Phuket, Bali, Seoul, Singapore, Phnom Penh, the Maldives, Tokyo, Taipei and Osaka.

China tourism revenue up 26.9% during Spring Festival holiday period

Xinhua, February 21, 2010

BEIJING, Feb. 21 (Xinhua) — China’s tourism revenue rose 26.9 percent to 64.62 billion Yuan (9.46 billion U.S. dollars) during the Spring Festival, the National Tourism Administration (NTA) said Sunday.

China received 125 million tourists during the holiday period from Feb. 13 to 19, up 14.8 percent from the same period last year, a statement on the NTA website said.

Of the tourism revenue, 4.6 billion Yuan came from airlines while 2.83 billion Yuan from railways. The tourists spent 26.51 billion Yuan in China’s 39 key tourism cities and 30.68 billion Yuan in other areas.

Among the tourists, 29.92 million stayed overnight and 95.13 million stayed for less than one day.

More Chinese mainlanders travel for New Year holiday: ministry

Xinhua, February 22, 2010

Chinese mainlanders made more outbound trips during the just-concluded one-week Lunar New Year holiday compared with a year ago, the Ministry of Public Security said Monday.

The number of entries and exits by mainlanders across the Chinese mainland border from February 13 to 19 grew by 20.8 percent to almost 2.4 million, the ministry said in a statement to Xinhua.

Jiang Yiyi, a researcher at the China Tourism Academy, attributed the popularity of outbound trips mainly to rapid economic growth on the Chinese mainland, easier access to visas and people becoming more willing to spend money.

According to the China Youth Travel Service (CYTS), popular outbound destinations for Chinese mainlanders included Southeast Asia, Australia and Taiwan.

Taiwan tourism authorities said earlier this month that there would be up to 4,000 mainland visitors a day to the island during the New Year holiday.

Since Taiwan lifted the ban on mainland tourist groups in June 2008, almost 650,000 mainlanders had visited the island by the end of 2009, spending more than 1.13 billion U.S. dollars.

Japanese stores eye Chinese tourists

CCTV, February 23, 2010

For the Japanese travel industry, Chinese tourists have been one of the few bright spots in a difficult year. Japanese shops are offering items targeting this group of buyers, and learning to speak the language.

Retailers in Japan are using the Chinese Lunar New Year to boost their sales. Decorations, products and even gift wrappings using Chinese slogans and the Year of the Tiger theme are flying off the shelves. Surrounded by so many Chinese-themed items, it’s no wonder many Chinese tourists think they haven’t left home at all.

To focus on the rapidly expanding Chinese tourism market, many department stores and shopping centers have also launched sales promotions targeting Chinese consumers.

Lino Nobukazu, store manager of Laox Duty Free, said, “During this Chinese New Year Holiday season, our revenue has gone up more than 50 percent year on year. The increase was mainly due to Chinese tourists.”

To attract more Chinese tourists, many Japanese stores have even hired staff who can speak the Chinese language.

According to Japanese travel authorities more than 1 million passenger trips were made from the Chinese mainland last year. Chinese tourists also spend 80,000 Japanese yen on average on each trip.

Tour package targets Chinese, Japanese

The Korea Herald, February 23, 2010

Travel packages tailored for Chinese and Japanese tourists are being developed by the Korea Tourist Organization to encourage inbound tourism from the country’s two East Asian neighbors.

A “KOR/CHN/JPN Free Tourism Belt” was proposed during a recent two-day meeting between the KTO regional chiefs from China and Japan in Beijing from Feb. 19-21.

The nation’s tourism arm has been aggressively targeting the single day tour market since costs for domestic travel for Chinese and Japanese travelers within their countries have been reported to be within the same ballpark as a trip to Korea.

For Japanese travelers, a two-day trip outside Tokyo using the high-speed Shinkansen train will set them back about 25,000 Yen ($272) – about the same cost for a two night stay in Korea.

Chinese travelers who travel from Beijing to Hainan on a five-day trip will spend an estimated 3,680 RMB ($539) compared to the 2,880 RMB ($422) for a trip to Korea’s Jeju Island.

The KTO’s marketing push targeted towards potential tourists from China and Japan also includes a new package currently in development, appropriately tagged “Korea, China, Japan: Three Kingdoms culture.”

The KTO hopes this will further boost inbound tourism to 10 million annually by 2012 from the record figures posted last year when the nation saw over 7 million visitors for the first time.

Chinese and Japanese tourists have become the most visible over the past few years in Korea, with over 1.9 million Chinese and over 2.9 million Japanese tourists alone making up the total figure of visitors last year.

Honeymoon market in China eyed

Reporter, February 23, 2010

The Japanese did it first, coming in by thousands in the 1980s. Then the Koreans followed, transforming the country into a honeymooner paradise. Now the Philippines and its tourism industry are preparing for what could be its biggest honeymoon arrivals to date—couples from mainland China and other Chinese groups.

The Department of Tourism, Cebu Pacific Air, and Chinese travel giant Dong Fang Travel Services announced in Cebu City this weekend the start of twice-a-week Cebu-Guangzhou flights starting March, with the three entities confident the flights could usher in what could be a new era for regional and national tourism.

Chinese tourists have grown exponentially since Tourism Secretary Joseph Ace Durano adopted a policy of “Asians first” for tourism. In 2004, only some 32,000 Chinese tourists came, but by 2009, preliminary figures show they have surpassed 200,000.

Bu said that aside from shopping, Chinese tourists love the beach and the entertainment in the Philippines. They also have several travel seasons in one year and the historical link between Filipinos and the Chinese also helps.

Spring Festival boosts tourism revenue

China Economic Review, February 24, 2010

February 24, 2010: China’s tourism revenue rose 26.9% to $9.46 billion U.S. dollars during the Spring Festival.

The National Tourism Administration reports there were 125 million tourists during the holiday period from Feb. 13 to 19, up 14.8% from the same period last year.

Of the tourism revenue, $673 million came from airlines while $414 million from railways. The tourists spent $3.88 billion in China’s 39 key tourism cities and $4.5 billion in other areas.

China’s tourism revenues to hit RMB 1.44 trln

China Knowledge, February 24, 2010

Feb. 17, 2010 (China Knowledge) – China’s tourism revenue is expected to grow 12% year on year to RMB 1.44 trillion in 2010, sources reported. Chinese tourists will make around 2.15 billion domestic trips this year, generating revenues of RMB 1.15 trillion, representing a year-on-year growth of 13%, said Shao Weiqi, director of National Tourism Administration.

China Consumer and Economic News

Skyscanner Reveals the World’s Biggest Spenders: Tourists Who Splash the Cash

Skyscanner, February 19, 2010

EDINBURGH, United Kingdom, Feb. 19 /PRNewswire/ — Flight comparison site Skyscanner investigates which countries like to flash their cash the most when they travel – the Germans are in the lead, but China is hot on their trail. At number one, it’s the Germans who spend over $90 billion a year on their travels, a disproportionate amount compared to their population which numbers just over 80 million, less than a third of the next biggest spenders – the USA, who splash $79.7 billion a year on holidays. In third place it’s the UK who splurge $68.5 billion to escape the UK on cheap flights each year. France, which is also the world’s most popular country in terms of tourist arrivals, empties their wallets of $42.1 billion per year, whilst the Chinese spend $36.2 billion annually on their travels.

Barry Smith, Skyscanner co-founder and business director commented: “It will be very interesting to see how tourist spending changes since the downturn. So far, the latest figures show that only the Japanese spent less on international tourism than the previous year. China is fast rising, spending 21% more on their global travels, and are likely set to grow even more. Meanwhile, it’s the Germans who remain the world’s biggest spending tourists, and there would have to be significant change for anyone else to catch up with them.”

ADS (Approved Destination Status) and Destination News

Nigeria willing to enhance tourism co-op with China

Xinhua, February 12, 2010

LAGOS, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) — Nigeria is willing to enhance cooperation with China in the tourism sector, an official of the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) told Xinhua on Friday.

Olusegun Runsewe, director-general of the NTDC said the corporation has designed a special website in Chinese language in a bid to attract more tourists from China.

“We receive over 200 enquiries from the Chinese audience on a daily basis, requesting to know more about Nigeria,” said Runsewe, who is planning to visit China in early April to formalize arrangement with the Chinese counterpart.

“We have identified China as a big market for our tourism industry to move forward, because we see them as a strategy partner,” he said.

There are huge opportunities in Nigeria’s tourism industry for investments, he said.

“At least 114 world airlinesfly into Nigeria on a weekly basis,” he said.

On security, he said the corporation is committed to providing the enabling business environment for visiting tourists and investors.

“We have mapped out a security network and I can assure you that all is well,” he said.

Increase to and fro visitors to boost ties, China tells India

The Times of India, February 11, 2010

NEW DELHI: To foster bilateral ties between the two Asian giants, China today suggested increasing the flow of visitors into the country from India and vice-versa.

“We hope more Indians visit China and also more Chinese come here… as India has so many beautiful tourist sites. This would strengthen the bilateral ties,” said Chinese Ambassador to India, Zhang Yan in the backdrop of both the countries celebrating the 60th year of their diplomatic ties.

His suggestion came at an international travel and tourism fair, which kicked off here today.

Fiji Using Tropical Allure To Lure Chinese Tourists

All Headline News, February 18, 2010

Suva, Fiji (AHN) – The allure of the tropics is being used as a lure to draw Chinese tourists to Fiji during the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai.

Tourism Fiji is targeting the Chinese tourism market during its participation at the 2010 World Expo to be held in Shanghai, China, said Tourism Fiji Chief Executive Officer Josefa Tuamoto.

Fiji is the essence of a tropical island paradise with white sandy beaches, swaying coconut trees, pristine ocean and waterways, said Tourism Fiji Chief Executive Officer Josefa Tuamoto. The island offers a range of things to do and see that will appeal to the most discerning traveler

Participation in the expo “will enable us to showcase Fiji as a potential destination for Chinese visitors,” Tuamoto said.

Fiji will be displaying food items, liquor, spices, canned foods, shoes, handicraft and kava.

“As the industry now focuses its efforts on China, which has shown an upward trend year by year, the Chinese market has become a new growth point for the tourism industry in the country.”

According to Tuamoto, the beginning of air routes of Air Pacific/Cathay Pacific-Hong Kong-Nadi has provided the opportunity for tourism stakeholders to look at new markets such as China.

Airline News

China to snare 14 new flights at Narita

Kyodo News, February 24, 2010

China is to be allocated 14 flights a week out of the 96 at Narita International Airport that will be granted to foreign airlines now that an extended runway is in full operation, transport ministry officials said Tuesday.

If the plan by the Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry goes through, the total flights to be operated by Japanese and Chinese airlines between Narita and China would increase by 28 a week.

The ministry intends to negotiate the matter with China’s aviation authority before this summer, according to the officials.

The extension to the second runway became fully operational in October. The annual number of landings and takeoffs at the airport is due to increase to 220,000 from the current 200,000 on March 28. The ministry also said it has licensed Shandong Airlines Group Co. to fly between Kansai International Airport near Osaka and Jinan, the capital of Shandong Province, starting March 2.

In the airline’s first regular service linking Japan with China, one flight will be operated on Tuesdays and Saturdays.

The government wants to boost the number of foreign visitors to Japan, including those traveling on business, to 25 million a year by 2019, and China with its burgeoning economy would have to be a big part of meeting that goal.

SAS Announces Better Connections From China To Northern Europe

China Hospitality News, February 4, 2010

A new partnership between CPH, Copenhagen’s airport, and SAS has reduced the minimum connection time at Copenhagen from 40 to 30 minutes means that SAS can offer more and quicker connections from China to Scandinavia.

Additionally, luggage handling will improve and become even more effective, while SAS flights will have a dedicated gate area at Copenhagen airport.

SAS now offers quicker and smoother connections to Stockholm, London and other destinations in Northern Europe such as Paris and Dusseldorf. With the shortened minimum connection time, travel time can be reduced by up to 2 hours and 35 minutes.

Lars Olofsson, the general manager of SAS for Greater China, Korea and Mongolia, commented that for China travelers, this means they can reach their destination much quicker, without having stress caused by the airport. Besides providing convenient transfer connections, SAS also offers travelers extended access to and from China with daily flights between China and Scandinavia from its hub in Beijing. On top of this, SAS offers same fare connections from 34 domestic destinations in China, making travel between Scandinavia, Northern Europe and China more accessible.

China’s Airport Authorities Suggest Seven Day Transit Period

China Hospitality News, February 3, 2010

In group discussions at the Third Session of the 13th Beijing People’s Congress, both Capital Airports Holding Company and Beijing Tourism Administration suggested extending the transit without visa period to seven days from the current 24 hours to increase the number of inbound tourists visiting Beijing.

International tourist cities like Paris and Tokyo have more than 10 million inbound tourists each year. However compared with these cities, Beijing is far behind. According to Beijing Tourism Administration, the number of inbound tourists to Beijing was around 4.17 million in 2009. Many tourists transfer at Beijing Capital International Airport, but the 24-hour visa-free policy has stopped them visiting the city thoroughly and restricted them to wandering around the airport.

China And Australia Sign New Air Services Agreement

China Hospitality News, February 23, 2010

The Hon Anthony Albanese, Australia’s Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, has announced that the Chinese and Australian governments have signed a new air services agreement that allows the two countries to increase the number of available seats on routes between Australia and China by 70% before the end of 2010.

Albanese said that the national airlines of both countries will be able to offer up to 10,500 seats per week immediately, with a further 4,000 seats per week from November 2010. Prior to this agreement seat allocations were capped at 8,500 per week.

In addition to allowing Chinese carriers to operate 2,000 of the additional seats on routes between China and Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, the new agreement also allows Australian airlines to operate routes between China and other destinations such as Europe.

ANA To Increase Flights To China In 2010

China Hospitality News, February 2, 2010

According to reports in the Japan’s Asahi Shimbun, All Nippon Airways has recently published its annual development plan for 2010, in which the company states that it has decided to increase the number of flights it operates to China.

The report states that ANA is applying to buy the routes to China that Japan Airlines Corporation had canceled following JAL’s filing for bankruptcy protection, in January 2010. ANA believes that these routes could be profitable if they are operated effectively.

ANA will increase the number of flights it operates between Narita International Airport and Hangzhou in China, from the current four a week to seven each week by the end of March 2010. ANA has not announced which aircraft types will be used for the additional flight, however it is understood that they will be type with a large passenger capacity.

http://www.chinahospitalitynews.com/en/2010/02/02/15002-ana-to-increase-flights-to-china-in-2010/

Hotel News

Sol Melia Opens Its First Luxury Hotel In China

China Hospitality News, February 8, 2010

Spanish brand Melia Hotels & Resorts has announced the opening of the first flagship Grand Melia hotel in China.

Gran Melia Shanghai opened recently as a luxury five-star hotel with 686 guest rooms. Located at the Lujiazui Finance and Trade Zone in Pudong New District, the hotel is located close to the Shanghai Oriental Pearl TV Tower and Shanghai Ocean Aquarium.

Antaeus Group Set To Build First Casino Hotel In China

China Hospitality News, February 8, 2010

According to a report in Sina.com, Antaeus Group has started construction of its Mangrove Tree Resort in Sanya Bay and, having had changes to its design, is expected to be the first branded casino hotel in mainland China.

The report says the hotel will build a sports betting venue and a casino for future use. The Sanya Bay Mangrove Tree Resort is reported to have more than 5,600 guest rooms, and guests will be able to gamble directly or to bet via direct video broadcast.

Currently, lotteries are the only form of betting allowed on Hainan Island. However, it is expected that casinos may be permitted in the future to help boost the development of the island as a tourist destination.

http://www.chinahospitalitynews.com/en/2010/02/08/15065-antaeus-group-set-to-build-first-casino-hotel-in-china/

Frasers To Soft Open Modena Brand In Tianjin

China Hospitality News, February 5, 2010

Frasers Hospitality PTE’s new Modena brand will soft open its first property in downtown Tianjin very soon.

The Modena brand is targeted at the ‘road warrior’ — business travelers who spend much of their time on the road — and is designed to provide a ’boutique hotel’ experience, with a services approach geared towards short to mid-term guests.

Other News

Meetings Go Green In Post-Copenhagen China

China Hospitality News, February 23, 2010

The most direct effect on China of the recent and inconclusive Copenhagen Climate Conference is that carbon reduction has become an issue in every aspect of economic and social life, including the hospitality and travel industry.

China has announced its carbon emissions goal for the first time, saying that by 2020 it would reduce its CO2 emissions per unit of GDP by 40% to 45%, compared to 2005 levels.

To achieve the goal of greenhouse gas emission reductions that Chinese government has set requires efforts by many industries, including tourism. “The View on Accelerating the Development of Tourism Industry” mentions “green tourism” and “low carbon tourism” several times, which implies environmental tourism and a balance between tourism and nature. The View also states that China would develop tourism into a strategic polar industry for the national economy, and into a more satisfactory modern service industry. Tourist numbers for domestic travel should reach 3.3 billion, and that the numbers for inbound and outbound travel should reach 200 million. According to Alicia Yao, the deputy general manager of the meeting and incentive division of CITS Head Office, this poses a great threat to the environment if tourism is not sustainable and “green”.