Chinese tourists in Antarctica (file photo)

More Chinese vacationers are heading to Antarctica, as the country’s wealthy population continues to grow.

Data predicts that over 5,000 Chinese tourists will travel to Antarctica this year. A decade ago, only 99 Chinese tourists visited Antarctica during the travel season, but the number climbed to 4,100 during the 2014/2015 travel season, according to Singapore-based Zaobao.com.

In the 2014/2015 travel season, over 38,000 people around the globe visited Antarctica, according to the International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO).

Based on tourist numbers to Antarctica, China is expected to rank second after the United States.

It costs from 70,000 to 160,000 RMB ($10,151- 23,203) to visit Antarctica, an acceptable price for more and more Chinese as the country’s average disposable income has reached 50,000 RMB ($7,251) in big cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, according to Liu Hongli, a professor with the College of Resource Environment and Tourism at Capital Normal University in Beijing. Liu said the number of Chinese tourists to Antarctica is set to soar.