How the World Attracts Chinese Tourists
A hundred million tourists from China travel to all corners of the world every year. Destinations around the world are fighting desperately to attract these tourists because they know Chinese big spenders will bring them money in the following decades. In 2013 alone, Chinese travellers spent over 100 billion dollars abroad.
A booming economy and a growing Chinese middle class allows more people to travel than ever before. Western countries have been preparing for the mass influx of Chinese tourists for some time. They are also making it easier for Chinese travellers to feel at home when on holidays.
France, for example, has started hiring police officers from China to protect tourists in Paris and other cities. Other countries, including the United States and Great Britain, are not requiring visas for Chinese travellers any more. Chinese credit cards are becoming more and more accepted in Europe and elsewhere. Hotels, airports and shopping malls around the world have been hiring Mandarin speakers.
Shopping is the main reason for Chinese citizens to travel abroad. China is becoming the biggest market for luxury goods. Louis Viton bags and Rolex watches are only two items that Chinese are fond of, and they will do anything and go anywhere to get them. Luxury items are bought as status symbols. Many Chinese buy them abroad because there are high taxes on such goods inside China.
However, shopping is not the only reason for China’s travel boom. Chinese citizens go to other countries for sports and leisure activities. Canada, for example, wants to help Chinese tourists during the winter months by hiring Chinese skiing instructors. They also go on extended tours of Europe and the US and enjoy a new culture that is different from what they experience at home.
Related Topics
- Tourism
- Chinese Luxury Goods Want to Compete With The West
- More Tourists From Rising Economies
- Troubled Times for Macau's Casinos
- Kai Tak - Hongkong's Legendary Airport
Words
- abroad = in another country, mostly overseas
- attract = get, invite
- big spender = person who has a lot of money and likes to buy things with it
- billion = a thousand million
- booming economy = more and more goods are produced and people have more money to buy products
- citizen = person who lives in a country and has rights there
- decade = a period of 10 years
- desperately = very hard
- destination = place to go for holidays
- elsewhere = somewhere else
- experience = feel
- extended tour = trip that lasts for a longer time
- fond of = like
- hire = give someone a job for a short time
- however = but
- instructor = teacher
- item = product
- leisure activity = things you can do in your free time
- luxury goods = products that are very expensive
- mall = large area with shops, and other places to have fun and enjoy yourself
- Mandarin = official language in China, spoken by most people
- mass influx = when many people come to a country at the same time
- require = need
- status symbol = something that you have an that shows how high your position is in society
- tax = money you must give the government for the services it offers for everyone
- visa = official mark that is put on your passport and allows you to enter a country for a short time