Published on : Saturday, October 27, 2018
A joint initiation by the UNWTO and the Global Tourism Economy Research Centre (GTERC), the report shows that in 2016, some 5.7 million Chinese tourists visited Europe, accounting for about 5 percent of China’s total outbound travel.
Of these, some 3.5 million, or 3 percent, trips were made to European Union destinations, with Italy, France, Germany and Spain witnessing the highest number of Chinese arrivals in 2016.
According to Chinese departure data, France, the UK, Germany and Italy are the top destinations by first port of call, followed by Central and Eastern European countries including the Czech Republic, Croatia, Slovakia and Bulgaria. Chinese travelers now prefer to visit non-traditional destinations that have a strong cultural appeal. The Czech Republic received almost half a million Chinese tourists in 2017, six times more than in 2010, while Hungary and Poland both welcomed five times more, compared to 2010. Croatia, meanwhile, saw the largest increase in visitors, with 13 times more Chinese arrivals.
Direct flights to Europe played an important role in boosting these figures.
Tags: Chinese tourists