Increase in Overseas Travel from China... Preference for Ski Tourism to Japan, Korea, and Finland

Overseas travel by Chinese people is rapidly increasing. Local media have diagnosed this as a phenomenon where market confidence is being revived in line with the recently resurgent consumption.

On the 27th, China’s state-run Global Times cited statistics from the online travel agency Trip.com, reporting that group ski tour bookings for next year’s Lunar New Year and Spring Festival holidays have increased sixfold and sixteenfold respectively compared to the same period last year. Popular travel destinations include Japan, Korea, Finland, and Russia. Overall overseas travel demand during the Lunar New Year holiday increased about five times compared to last year, with demand mainly concentrated on Japan, Thailand, Australia, and the United States.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

The Global Times (GT) explained, "As Chinese interest in skiing, hot springs, concerts, and music festivals rises, a new trend is emerging in overseas travel this winter," adding, "Interest in travel is spreading from domestic to overseas." It also evaluated, "Going to Northern Europe to see the aurora or enjoy winter activities is another trend among Chinese people," reflecting that "consumer confidence has noticeably revived."

Another online travel agency, Tuniu.com, announced that its Northern Europe travel packages created for next year’s Spring Festival holiday sold out a month ago. GT also reported that many travelers are heading to Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand to avoid the unusual cold wave.

Recently, China’s key indicators such as industrial production and retail sales have revived, raising expectations for economic recovery. Industrial production in November increased by 6.6% year-on-year, significantly surpassing the forecast (5.6%) and the previous month’s figure (4.6%), while retail sales rose by 10.1% year-on-year, marking the largest increase in six months since May (12.7%).

The market expects that tourism demand will continue through the Spring Festival, injecting vitality into early-year consumption. Zhang Yi, CEO of the Chinese market research institute iMedia Research, predicted, "Trends such as tourism, cultural activities, and consumption of heating products are becoming active," adding, "This will greatly contribute to promoting economic growth."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.