Three confirmed trends in post-Covid Chinese tourism

China Tourism Academy and Mafengwo released a report about the emerging trends of independent travellers in 2021. The report analyses the changes in the consumption trends of young travellers, together with making predictions about the development of the tourism market in the post-epidemic era. If a comparison between this report and the previous one is made, some ongoing trends can be observed:

• Important role of safety
  As can be confirmed by a survey conducted by Dragon Trail in November 2022, Chinese travellers still put safety first when choosing their holiday destination. In fact, 95.3% respondents underlined how safety is the most influencing factor for travel plans in 2021, followed by food (67.8%) and scenery (63.0%).
• Outdoor and nature-oriented activities
  Both reports underline how the main activities of Chinese travellers were outdoor and nature oriented. The new way of travelling is no more about places but about experiences such as climbing and camping.
• Rural tourism
  As predicted last year, travellers’ habits in 2020 and 2021 confirm how rural tourism is once again the biggest travel trend for this year. Chinese post-Covid domestic tourism, in fact, has been focusing on rural tourism with more than 40% of young travellers having done at least one countryside trip in 2021. Moreover, family (33.0%) and friends (32.2%) seem to be the preferred companionship for this kind of trip.

At Twissen, we observed a continuum between 2020 and 2021 travellers’ trends. Chinese travellers, as a matter of fact, still prefer safer destinations, possibly with open-air activities and in not-so-crowded spaces. When Chinese will return to travel overseas, providers of camping and outdoor activities will need to seize this opportunity to communicate their safety standards, together with offering more and more open-air services to expand their market. 

Twissen