Market on course for recovery as COVID-19 restrictions lifted
Aline of passport applicants forms at the Beijing Public Security Bureau immigration service hall on Jan 9. (ZOU HONG / CHINA DAILY)
Lin Mao, who works for a private outbound tourism agency in Beijing, decided to take a look at WeChat Moments on his phone just before going to bed on Dec 26.
He saw that the National Health Commission had announced that the quarantine requirement for international arrivals would be scrapped starting on Jan 8, when management of COVID-19 cases would be downgraded from Class A to Class B.
Our main goal is to hopefully return to pre-pandemic status and open up direct flights ... as soon as possible.
Wouter Vermeulen, general manager of China business for Air France and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines
"Many celebratory posts suddenly appeared on WeChat. The comments were generally full of hope for new business opportunities," Lin said.
He welcomed the commission's announcement, as his company had struggled to remain in business for the past three years.
"Now that the market has been allowed to open, it will take some time for us to develop our tourism products. I need to find out where we stand in light of the new situation and also sort out our available overseas travel resources," Lin said.
China's outbound tourism sector is expected to bounce back as a result of the newly adjusted COVID-19 response that lifts restrictions on Chinese citizens' traveling overseas and also promotes cross-border personnel exchanges.
Numerous posts from netizens voicing enthusiasm for overseas travel have appeared on Chinese social media platforms, with people scouring online travel sites to search for destinations and book air tickets.
According to online travel service provider Trip.com Group, the search volume for outbound flights and overseas hotels reached a three-year high just 30 minutes after the health commission's announcement.
Reservations for outbound flights soared by 254 percent on the morning of Dec 27, compared with the same period the previous day, the online agency reported.
Countries elsewhere in Asia are expected to be among the first to benefit from the wave of travelers from China.
The agency said Singapore and Thailand are among the most popular destinations for Chinese tourists.
Fang Zeqian, an analyst at Trip.com Group, said the changed response to COVID-19 will smooth the way for cross-border travel.
Wouter Vermeulen, general manager of China business for Air France and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, is excited about the new measures.
"They came earlier than we expected, and my team members are thrilled," he said.
"The next step for us is to understand the meaning behind these measures, as these are high-level decisions, and we need to work with local and civil aviation authorities to get these policies implemented."
Vermeulen expects the Dutch and French authorities to hold discussions with China about resuming normal flight frequencies, which he hopes to see no later than the summer.
"Our main goal is to hopefully return to pre-pandemic status and open up direct flights from Beijing and Shanghai to Paris and Amsterdam as soon as possible," he said.
Travelers from China arrive at Suvarnabhumi Airport, Bangkok, Thailand, on Jan 6. (FRANK RUMPENHORST / PICTURE-ALLIANCE / DPA / AP)
Close attention
Li Chunmei, who deals with China operations at Sweden's official website for tourism and travel information, Visit Sweden, was on vacation in Italy when she saw that China had adjusted its response to COVID-19.
She said domestic media outlets contacted the Swedish tourism authority after the announcement to inquire about the prospects for the Chinese market.
"Sweden is paying close attention to the latest Chinese policy and is very much looking forward to welcoming Chinese tourists," Li said.
She believes that more good news will soon be announced, such as flights being increased and the return of tours with Approved Destination Status — an arrangement between the Chinese government and many other nations for Chinese holiday travelers to visit a country as members of a tour group.
Before the pandemic emerged, Chinese travelers spent more than 400,000 nights in Sweden every year, according to Visit Sweden.
Although this figure accounted for just 2 percent of outbound travelers to the Scandinavian country, Visit Sweden went ahead with setting up a China office, which Li said shows just how highly Sweden values Chinese tourists.
She added that the number of such tourists visiting Sweden has risen between two and three times in the past decade.
"We are certain to step up our China marketing efforts in the coming year, including media exposure and staging travel industry events," Li said.
"As there have been a lot of staff changes in the travel industry over the past three years, we need to strengthen our destination knowledge training.
"Our strength has always been in experiencing the outdoors, and judging by the shift in China's domestic travel trends over the past three years, Sweden will now be more attractive to Chinese visitors."
According to the Annual Report on China's Outbound Tourism Development (2022-23) recently released by the China Tourism Academy, the nation's outbound tourism took a hit from 2020 to last year, with 400 million trips lost.
The report said restarting outbound tourism will effectively restore tourists' confidence and contribute to a quick recovery in this market.
Feng Rao, head of a research institute at Chinese travel service and social networking platform Mafengwo, said the new COVID-19 measures will release three years of pent-up desire for overseas travel.
An Air China passenger plane stands at Frankfurt Airport, Germany, after arriving from Chengdu, Sichuan province, on Jan 5. (FRANK RUMPENHORST / PICTURE-ALLIANCE / DPA / AP)
The upcoming Spring Festival holiday is expected to be a key turning point for China's outbound travel industry, Feng said.
Given the high number of potential Chinese tourists, the outbound travel recovery is expected to play a key role in boosting domestic and global tourism markets.
In 2019, Chinese citizens made 155 million outbound trips, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
That year, Chinese travel agencies' operating revenue from outbound travel services reached 214.56 billion yuan ($30.8 billion), accounting for 41.54 percent of their total tourism revenue, according to the ministry.
The huge potential of China's outbound tourism market has resulted in numerous countries laying down the welcome mat for Chinese arrivals.
Lin Jiaze, director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand's office in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, said business operations at the Thai embassy in Beijing and Thai visa centers elsewhere in China have returned to normal.
He said he is happy to see many Chinese travel agencies already offering deals to Thailand.
Before COVID-19 emerged, Chinese tourists accounted for one-third of inbound tourists to Thailand.
Over the years, China and Thailand have worked to publicize tourism, and six months ago, Thailand stepped up cooperation with airlines and related tourism players.
On Jan 9, Thailand welcomed its first group of Chinese tourists since the pandemic emerged, after local authorities removed the vaccination requirement before entry.
Anutin Charnvirakul, deputy prime minister and minister of public health, said visitors who are not vaccinated will also be granted unrestricted entry.
Thailand is offering visitors a longer period of stay. Effective until March 31, this period is extended from 30 to 45 days for tourists from countries and regions that qualify for visa exemption. For those eligible for a visa on arrival, the period is extended from 15 to 30 days.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand expects 5 million Chinese tourists to visit the country this year.
A cashier at a souvenir shop in Malacca, Malaysia, puts up an Alipay sign on Jan 4 to cater to Chinese tourists. (CHEN YUE / CHINA NEWS SERVICE)
In Singapore, Cavaliere Giovanni Viterale, general manager of the luxury resort hotel Sofitel Sentosa Resort & Spa, said it has created Lunar New Year deals aimed at Chinese visitors, including a hotpot buffet and romantic packages for couples.
Chinese travelers are urged to check the tourism policy at their destinations before setting out.
The United States, England and Japan are among countries enforcing new travel requirements for arrivals from China, including negative COVID-19 test results.
Industry players said that with the relaunch of outbound travel, Chinese tourists' preferences might change, with friendly entry policies at overseas destinations certain to influence their choices.
Tourism experts said despite the prospects for sound growth momentum, it will take time for China's outbound tourism market to achieve a full recovery.
Zhou Weihong, deputy general manager at Spring Tour, said small, customized and themed tours will become popular following the resumption of outbound tourism, with more attention being paid to safety.
Yang Yanfeng, director of the online tourism research center at the Tourism College of Beijing Union University, told China Tourism News, "Based on the external environment and concerns about the pandemic, Chinese tourists still need a period of adjustment.
"During this period, overseas destinations that have friendly and open entry policies for Chinese tourists are more likely to gain favor among these visitors."
Yang added that destinations in Southeast Asia will be the first to benefit from the return of Chinese tourists.
Feng, from Mafengwo, said prices for outbound flights and overseas hotels are expected to return to pre-pandemic levels as tourism recovers, but due to short-term constraints in the supply of facilities and labor, it will take time for these price declines to reach the public.
Guo Lechun, vice-president of the big data research institute at online travel service provider Qunar, said there will not be a significant rise in the number of international flights in the short term due to existing flight scheduling and approval plans.
Vermeulen, from Air France and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, is optimistic that direct flights from Beijing and Shanghai to Paris and Amsterdam can return between the end of March and the summer.
"We all need to travel for personal and professional reasons, and this new policy will make our lives easier," he said.
The Dutchman, who has lived in China for six months with his wife and two children, spent the Christmas holiday with his family in Sanya, Hainan province.
"We don't have any travel plans for Spring Festival yet, but we want to see more of China," he said.
