China Traveller
October 2009
Q: How would you define the Chinese traveler?
A: It is difficult to define as it is changing in China all the time. Ten years ago most of the Chinese outbound travelers were first time travelers, they would usually travel for two weeks and see 10 counties in one stint. More recently it has changed in that many tourists travel to one destination only. These FIT travelers spend more money, they understand the world of travel and as such do not have unrealistic expectations or demands. Today’s Chinese traveling consumer conducts research before their trip, mostly on the Internet and prefer Chinese language portals. They also trust the comments made in the local online chat rooms.
Q: Which trends do you foresee increasing in popularity?
A: Smaller groups traveling for a longer duration is becoming more popular, especially amongst those from Beijing and Shanghai. It also seems Guangzhou travelers understand more about outbound travel than their fellow countrymen due to their proximity to, and influence under, Hong Kong travel agencies. A small minority even prefer to travel with Hong Kong groups.
Q: Most recent figures for outbound Chinese travel to Germany?
A: From January to June 2009 there has been an average 11% drop in travel for all the cities we represent. Three cities however posted positive gains including Berlin, Dresden & Hamburg. Berlin in particular is growing in popularity and is becoming Europe’s third most attractive city after Paris and London. Hainan Airline flights to Berlin are supporting this growing trend.
Q: Average length of stay for Chinese travelers to Germany?
A: With ADS group travel the average length of stay in Germany is a mere 2-3 days stay. Currently we are negotiating with tour operators to develop mono-destination packages for Germany. Furthermore, Germany is very much encouraging FIT travel. FIT travellers tend to travel for an average of 5-7 days.
Q: Breakdown in terms of ADS versus FIT travelers?
A: It is hard to determine exactly who falls into what categories. To date the majority of travel to Germany is dominated by business travel. For example, an average of 700,000 Chinese travel to Germany annually, of which 60% or more are business travellers. I can estimate that in 2008 we received less than 20,000 ADS tourists, but at the same time that is not a fair reflection as a Schengen visa is easier to apply for in other European consulates.
Q: Financial crisis and swine flu impact on arrivals from China?
A: Swine flu did have a huge impact on arrivals while the financial crisis had an impact on our business travellers who make up the bulk. Lufthansa for example is struggling a little with their business class offerings as are other airlines. Since July of this year however the numbers are starting to pick up and we expect their will be a recovery in the second half of the year.
Q: How is brand Germany perceived in the China market?
A: The overall image of Germany in China as a tourist destination is not so good as it is perceived to be rather industrial with a lack of romance. Next year there will be a big push for FIT travel promotions. In the past tour operator relations were more important but now things are different as almost everyone has ADS. We are thus now starting to look at the end consumer as we believe they must first be knowledgeable of the product before they decide to travel to our destination.
Q: Rough geographical breakdown of Chinese arrivals to Germany?
A: Our tourists predominantly come from Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong – but mostly from Beijing. We also conduct promotions however in Chengdu, Chongqing, Shenyang, Hangzhou and Nanjing etc.
Q: Which countries compete with brand Germany?
A: French and Italian cities more likely than most to be our competitors whilst Swiss, Austrian and Czech Republic cities compliment our German cities, we are in a great position to cooperate with them.
Q: Major obstacles to positively brand Germany to a Chinese audience?
A: Education, education, education! Chinese consumers are generally not aware of how beautiful Germany is.
Q: Methods/tactics to generate better awareness in China?
A: We are engaging in more interactive type events, more Internet based platforms. For example we are cooperating with the Travel Channel of www.sina.com to highlight our ‘Magic Winter’. It includes a questionnaire with a lucky draw to win a trip to Germany. We are also working with travel agencies to produce more interesting and realistic products. Lastly, we are providing travel agents with the opportunity to conduct online e-learning courses, something that was effectively carried out by Australia and Switzerland.
Q: How does Germany plan to leverage the 2010 World Expo Shanghai?
A: We will be supporting the efforts of Hamburg House (Euro 6 million investment) which is a sister city of Shanghai. We will also be supporting Dusseldorf with their independent pavilion. No plans to assist the German national pavilion thus far.
Q: Most creative or audacious tactic/ strategy/ campaign ever employed in China?
A: As you know Berlin is renown for its great nightlife. Also in the past we would engage in the usual (‘boring’) workshops and seminars. We accordingly broke the mould recently and hosted a party in Beijing and invited 140 journalists, 100 persons from German companies and travel agency representatives who were all entertained by a famous German DJ. We have received great media coverage so far and it was overall a great success. Next year we will include a consumer part which we are very excited about.
China Representative, Zhaohui Li. Ms. Li serves as China Representative to the Magic Cities of Germany which includes Berlin, Cologne, Dresden, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hannover, Leipzig, Munich & Stuttgart.
