Australia races to become China ready

The future of travel to Australia looks bright with twice as many Chinese tourists expected by 2023, but tourism experiences need to adapt to compete with global players.

Melbourne will fare the best with the city expected to see a 109% rise in Chinese arrivals by 2023, while Sydney can expect 89% more Chinese tourists, but Queensland will also score winnings with Brisbane and the Gold Coast anticipating 90% and 86% increases respectively.

The data was released as part of a global study conducted by InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) in partnership with Oxford Economics, which researched current trends in Chinese outbound travel and how economic and demographic developments will shape demand for Chinese travel over the next decade.

The report revealed favourable economic and demographic trends will fuel Chinese travel market demand for international travel over the next decade, with Chinese traveller preferences evolving towards long haul, leisure-driven travel.

“Holiday trips proved to be the most popular purpose of travel for Chinese visitors to Australia, generating the highest average per-night spend ($449 nightly) compared to other travel purposes,” the report stated.

Key drivers indicated behind the growth will be an increase in family incomes, which is expected to cross over $46,022 (US$35,000) in 60 million Chinese households, “at which point international travel becomes more affordable”.

“With the shift towards leisure travel, coupled with the 90 million Chinese households able to take long-haul trips by 2023, the country’s growing importance in the global travel market cannot be underestimated,” IHG ceo, Richard Solomons said.

IHG Australasia, Japan & Korea,chief operating officer, and Franchising for AMEA,Karin Sheppard said almost 50% of IHG hotels in the region are “China Ready” accredited, with plans for future growth alongside the increase the hotel group expects to gain from Chinese visitation.

According to Tourism Australia’s managing director, John O’Sullivan, China now represents Australia’s second largest and most valuable inbound tourism market.

“Having a clear China strategy was critical if the Australian tourism industry was to fully leverage the projected increase in arrivals … (China tourism) already worth more than A$5 billion a year and with the potential to reach more than S13 billion by the end of the decade,” he said.

“With so many other countries now competing so fiercely for the market, we can’t afford to take success for granted. This means understanding what Chinese travellers are looking for in an overseas holiday and, where needed, adapting and developing our tourism experiences to better fit their needs and expectations.”

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