Travel and Tourism Newsletter – February 2010
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.
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”.
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