The ITB World Travel Trends Report 2008/2009 issued on March 11 predicts that China's outbound travel will continue to grow in 2009. It says that China remains a popular source of outbound travel.
xxxwww.Chinakindnesstour.comxxxwww.Chinakindnesstour.comThe report cites figures released by the Chinese government as saying that the number of outbound tourists from Chinese mainland in 2008 grew by 14 percent from the previous year to reach over 40 million in total. Of them, around 70 percent traveled to China's Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions, while another 13-14 million people chose to take holidays in foreign countries.
xxxwww.Chinakindnesstour.comxxxwww.Chinakindnesstour.comThe report says that the number of outbound tourists in countries in the Americas, Europe and other regions will certainly drop in 2009, while the most optimistic scenario in Asia could see the start of a recovery before the end of 2009. According to statistics from the World Tourism Organization, outbound travel from Asian countries in the first half of 2008 increased six percent from the same period the previous year, but the figure dropped two to three percent in the second half. Of this, 16.5 million Japanese traveled outbound in 2008, a decline of 1.5 million travelers from 2007.
xxxwww.Chinakindnesstour.comxxxwww.Chinakindnesstour.comThe report forecasts in 2009, short-haul travel within Asia will be more attractive than long-haul travel. If oil prices continue to persist at low levels, low-cost carriers in the Asian aviation industry are likely to have a new round of explosive growth. The report also discovered that the youth in Asia are becoming one of the major groups for outbound travel. Young consumers now typically see personal travel as a key activity in their lifestyles. Young consumers in Asia would postpone buying a car, but not put off going somewhere for their next vacation.
