LONDON and
MCLEAN, Va. - The number of Chinese outbound tourists visiting
Europe is expected to grow to 4.5 million by 2015 and around 8.6
million by 2020, giving the European travel industry potential income
of more than €2 billion, based on an average spend of €234 per night.
This huge growth opportunity is outlined in a new report written by the
University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS)
and commissioned by Hilton Hotels & Resorts, the
flagship brand of Hilton Worldwide. The study, 'How the Rise of Chinese Tourism will Change the Face
of the European Travel Industry,' identifies current advantages and
disadvantages of Europe for Chinese outbound travel and tourism (COTT).
Dave Horton, global head, Hilton Hotels & Resorts said: "The report
provides new insight as our industry focuses on attracting outbound
Chinese travellers for the long term. We must recognise emerging trends
and act quickly in order for European communities to fully seize the
historic opportunity created by this exponential growth."
The report finds that COTT generated an estimated 3 million visitor
trips to Europe in 2010, with the largest number of Chinese travellers
visiting Italy, France and Germany.
It identified that a growing number of first-time Chinese tourists are
choosing to travel independently, rather than with traditional tour
groups. Second- and third-time travellers, who feel comfortable
travelling alone or in small groups of family or friends, are further
fuelling this trend. These travellers enjoy the freedom to select
venues and attractions that cater to their individual interests instead
of feeling bound by tour group schedules, and may also be drawn to
smaller locations that are typically not considered by tour group
operators.
Sandie Dawe, chief executive, VisitBritain said: "Chinese visitor
numbers to the UK have been steadily rising over the last few years,
but we can clearly do more to attract an even greater number. China has
a rich cultural heritage of its own and according to the latest Nations
Brand Index, now has a far better understanding of British culture, our
people and what they can experience when they are here. We must build
on this and ensure the industry develops products that meet the needs,
tastes and desires of Chinese travellers."
This shift in travel behaviours has major implications for the way in
which the tourism industry will need to market to outbound Chinese
tourists. This consumer base has a very high Internet penetration rate
of 36.2 percent nationally, and Internet usage is more than double this
figure in the large cities. More than 318 million access the Internet
regularly and the average Internet user spends 18.7 hours per week
online. Before departing, Chinese travellers will look online for
information about destinations, hotels, and transport offerings, and
are more likely to get their information through social media rather
than official company websites. Online video sharing sites that offer
videos of tourist destinations and traveller-generated blogs and
microblogs are very popular and influential in the decision-making
process for Chinese travellers.
Kevin Latham, senior lecturer, University of London School of Oriental
and African Studies, and author of the report said: "Social media is
quick, influential and popular, and the travel industry has to take
social media seriously. Used appropriately, the marketing potential is
enormous and opens up opportunities for players at all levels. The key
is attracting Chinese travellers to your venue, and if they love the
experience, they will likely talk about it on social networking sites,
which could result in huge visitor numbers."
In addition to large companies, niche offerings also have vast
opportunities with this form of communication. Chinese travellers will
search for venues and packages that suit their lifestyles and
interests, which could result in high demand for bespoke packages
catering to Chinese tastes such as whisky tasting tours in Scotland and
vineyard tours in France, Italy, the UK and Germany. Earlier this year,
Hilton introduced Hilton Huanying,
a programme taking its name from the Chinese word for welcome.
Participating hotels provide Chinese speaking staff, traditional
Chinese breakfast items and a range of in-room amenities including
slippers, a welcome letter in Chinese, Chinese television programming
and Chinese tea.
Tourism Minister John Penrose said: "We are living in exciting times
for the UK tourism industry with new markets opening up and brilliant
opportunities arising to promote the country to them. Chinese
visitors in particular will play an especially important part in
growing our industry. So I commend initiatives like Hilton
Huanying and the research commissioned by Hilton Hotels & Resorts
from the School of Oriental and African Studies - the more we
understand what our new customers want and expect, the better able we
will be to offer them a warm welcome and a rewarding experience when
they come to the UK."
Potential Chinese customers are likely to be geographically
concentrated in identifiable parts of the country and involved with
particular social groups. They are also likely to have predictable
media consumption habits such as reading specific titles and visiting
themed websites, which creates opportunity for marketers to gain access
and more easily target this audience.
To view a summary and full version of the 'How The Rise in Chinese
Tourism will Change the Face of the European Travel Industry' report,
other Hilton Blue Papers or to learn more about Hilton Huanying, visit www.hiltonglobalmediacenter.com.<>
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Hilton Worldwide is the leading global hospitality company, spanning
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