Americans Consider, “Are Chinese Tourists the Future of Travel?”

NEW YORK, Sept. 18 – For American destinations in search of new source markets, anticipation about a visa agreement with China holds much promise. The Japanese tourist boom of the 1980’s? The number of Chinese projected to travel to the USA dwarfs that trend by a factor of at least 10.

Few American organizations are in position to profit from the opportunity. Los Angeles, Hawaii and Nevada are the only USA destinations with legal status in China: a prerequisite for advertising, or direct outreach to Chinese travel agents. Even for American businesses with brands in China - airlines and hotel chains present in China for years - the outbound Chinese market presents new challenges.

For USA tourism professionals planning to attend WTM, an hour networking with outbound China industry experts is one option for getting up to speed quickly. ChinaContact, organizer of a forum on outbound China issues, offers USA delegates the time-efficient option to attend one or more morning sessions, or to join the networking lunch only. (www.chinaoutboundworkshop.eventbrite.com)
The forum’s speakers include experts from destinations in Asia and Europe, which signed tourism visa agreements with China years ago. The President and CEO of PATA, Peter de Jong, will open a China-focused conference at WTM with a talk called ‘The Face of China Tourism: Driving Change’ while speakers from VisitLondon and Accor Hotels will present their tips.

Results of a global survey on perceptions and plans of China’s outbound tourism will be also announced at WTM. ChinaContact, the UK’s leading outbound tourism consultancy and sponsor of the survey, invites American tourism professionals to add their views. Those who complete the survey will receive a free copy of the China Outbound Tourism Handbook, gain access to survey results, and qualify to win ten free hours of consultation. Visit http://www.future-of-travel.org to take the survey.

“American tourism boards and destinations have a real opportunity. There is huge demand among affluent Chinese to visit North America,” says Janet Carmosky, a career China business specialist who is the conference’s USA contact. “Capitalizing on that demand begins with an understanding the regulatory environment and the travel agent landscape in China. More experienced tourism professionals can help us take a hard look at our assumptions about hour China’s tourism industry works, and about what Chinese travellers expect and want.”

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Contact:
USA media contact: Janet Carmosky janet@chinaprospects.com +1 (518) 894-4805
Event organizer: Roy Graff roy@chinacontact.co.uk
Survey: http://www.future-of-travel.org

Registration:
Short session or lunch http://www.chinaoutboundworkshop.eventbrite.com/
Full day http://future-of-travel-usa.eventbrite.com/