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Outbound Tourists Focus More on Culture
Increasing numbers of Chinese tourists travelling abroad are taking more time to admire the new cultures they are discovering, compared with past experiences of rushing from one scenic spot to another.
"Tourists began to show their enthusiasm in new routes in Thailand, including visits to Chiangmai and Chiangrai in the north, as well as the Phuket Island, since July, while in the past Bankok and Pattaya have been the typical destinations," said Wang Yayu, senior manager of the Southeast Asia Division under the China International Travel Service (CITS) head office.
Twenty-three year old Beijinger Lin Qiong obviously enjoyed his trip to Chiangmai.
"It is such a quiet city and I spent everyday wandering the streets, enjoying that strong taste of Thailand," Lin said.
Chen Yonghua, a 45-year-old tourist guide in Bangkok, who began to receive tourist groups from China in 1992, said: ``Chinese clients I received before just hurried to another destination after finishing visiting one scenic spot.''
As the first country open to Chinese tourists, Thailand still tops the 14 countries visited by the Chinese.
``We want our tourists to enjoy our culture and our living conditions during their stay in Thailand,'' said Jamlong Ratanapan, director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand's Hong Kong office, in charge of the China market.
Although Chinese people are able to travel to 14 countries, Southeast Asian countries -- especially Thailand -- is still favorite to tourists for its comparatively low prices.
According to statistics from CITS, 42 per cent of the tourists who traveled abroad chose Southeast Asian countries as destinations last year.
However, competitors are emerging from the north. Sources from travel agencies in Shanghai said that passenger liners to Japan and the Republic of Korea became extremely competitive, and have been fully reserved in mid-September, even though prices are higher than usual.
Source: China Daily
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