The positive tourism forecast means China will move up to the world's number one tourist destination, according to the tourism organisation. They added "travel fever" will climax in the year 2020.

That's music to the ears of China's tourism officials.

Sun Gang, Vice Director of China National Tourism Administration said: "In the last two decades, the tourism industry in China has been growing faster than almost any other country. This supports the World Tourism Organization's prediction. In the next two decades, as long as the number of incoming tourists keeps increasing by 8 per cent, China will be the number one tourist destination in the world."

By 2020, some 130 million overseas tourists are expected to visit China. China's popularity will then reach an all-time high, overtaking France as world travellers' favourite country. Meanwhile, the number of Chinese visiting abroad will be the world's fourth largest tourist group.

The Chinese national tourism administration official also said the country should do more to find tourist spots in China's western regions. He said the country should also work harder to draw in more tourists from the Middle East and Africa.