Chinese outbound tourists expected to increase

Beijing, Feb 22: China's outbound tourism is expected to reach five to six million during this year's Spring Festival holidays, a media report said on Monday.

The tourism revenue might reach 90 billion yuan (about $13 billion), as Chinese outbound visitors are spending more and more, with average expenses per trip reaching 15,000 yuan ($2,300), according to the latest data issued by China Tourism Research Institute and Ctrip.com, one of the country's largest travel service websites.

During the recent seven-day Chinese Lunar New Year holiday, Chinese outbound tourists demonstrated strong spending power. Shopping has become the single largest outbound expenditure, the People's Daily reported.

According to data provided by the Korea National Tourism Organisation, the number of Chinese visitors to South Korea reached 15.7 million between February 7-13. Sales jumped at three major department stores in South Korea: Lotte, Hyundai and Shinsegae.

Based on statistics collected by major online travel agencies, the most popular destinations for Spring Festival travellers are Thailand, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the US, Indonesia, Malaysia and Australia.

IANS