China’s outbound travellers: A decade of growth

27 December, 2017

The China Outbound Tourism Research Institute (COTRI) projects that 2018 will see 154 million border crossings made by Chinese nationals, representing a 6.3% year-on-year increase from 2017's final forecast of 145 million.

Broken down, the 2018 figure is made up of 68 million trips to Greater China destinations, a 2% year-on-year increase, as well as 86 million arrivals in destinations in the rest of the world, a growth of 10% against 2017. With 56% of all trips in 2018 to take place beyond Greater China in 2018, the pattern of healthy growth in Chinese outbound tourism in destinations around the world is set to continue in the near future.

Nevertheless, commenting on the future outlook for Chinese outbound tourism, COTRI director Wolfgang Georg Arlt suggested that, as the market continues to mature, it is perhaps time that many destinations "stop talking about arrival numbers and start concentrating on quality and sustainable development also for the Chinese outbound tourism market."