Chinese tourists are making a comeback to the industry after almost two years of no activity due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, France and Italy – two typical destinations for Chinese and all tourists- are no longer top destinations, but Iceland has ignited an interest as a new place to visit.
According to the September 2023 Chinese Traveler Sentiment Report by DragonTrail, this nationality represents the fourth largest group of tourists in Iceland, while the European destination has never been on the top ten outbound destinations of Chinese tourists.
As a result, China lifted its COVID-19 restrictions for Iceland, in addition to another 40 countries, while the United States remained on the list of prohibited countries until August.
In general, the interest of Chinese tourists has shifted a lot from Europe in 2023, with the top four destinations being in the Asian continent – South Korea, Japan, Thailand, and Hong Kong.
Iceland is the fifth destination that Chinese tourists plan to travel to this year, and for 100 per cent of tourists, it will be the first time to visit this European country.
Around 55 per cent of respondents say they plan to travel within Asia, but Europe remains a top destination for long-haul travel, with over 34 per cent of respondents showing a strong inclination towards this destination.
Macau and Maldives are the two destinations where Chinese are headed to this year, while France is the eighth destination on the list of the top ten countries that this nationality plans to visit this year.
Only 11 per cent of Chinese tourists are repeating their trip to France, whereas 89 per cent will be visiting the country for the first time. The United Kingdom is the tenth destination that Chinese tourists plan to travel to in 2023 – with 93 per cent of them going there for the first time.
In addition, the fear of contracting COVID-19 has decreased among Chinese tourists and the United States no longer has the reputation it had back in 2021, as only 39 per cent of Chinese tourists consider it unsafe to travel to compared to the 87 per cent figure recorded in the same period in 2021.
The confidence of Chinese tourists to travel again is positive as two of the most prominent holidays for this nationality are approaching, and those are usually accompanied by increased travel activity, meaning that Chinese tourists will be visiting many destinations during the autumn season.
