AVIATION - More Stars in the sky

expresstravelworld.com, Jan 2008

Star Alliance-the world's biggest airline alliance- recently celebrated its tenth anniversary by inducting two Chinese carriers-Air China based in Beijing and Shanghai Airlines in Shanghai- while its Chief Executives Board unanimously approved Air India's membership in Beijing.
By inducting an Indian carrier, Star has now filled its 'white spots' of India and China. Russia and South America will be next, according to Star CEO Jaan Albrecht. Talks are on with TAM Brazil to replace Varig and restore Star to Latin America. Next year, Turkish Airlines and EgyptAir are expected to join, extending the alliance in South East Europe and North Africa. Air India will become a member once integration of its systems to align with those of Star is completed within 15-18 months, said chairman and managing director, Vasudevan Thulasidas, who specially flew to Beijing for the announcement.

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CHINA - booming budget hotels profit from no frills

eTN, Jan 16, 2008

The number of budget hotel rooms has mushroomed in the past eight years from practically zero to over 100,000 with more than 100 brands competing for a bite of China's rapidly expanding domestic tourism market. More than a 100 brands have emerged.
The fast-developing Chinese budget hotel industry resembles the U.S. motel boom of the 1950s, which was fuelled by tourism and expanding highways.
"China has a population four times that of the U.S, and the potential to be the world's biggest budget hotel market," said Wang Lie, chief financial officer at budget chain Hanting Hotels.
Big and small Chinese investors, plus foreign heavyweights such as Morgan Stanley, Warburg Pincus and Merrill Lynch, are piling into the industry, even though fierce competition and sinking room rates now threaten to hurt profits.

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CHINA - Tourist arrivals to Three Gorges Dam hit record high in 2007

chinaview.cn, 2008-01-06

China's Three Gorges Dam attracted a record high of 1.25 million tourist arrivals last year, a year-on-year increase of six percent, according to tourism developers.
The dam received 310,000 foreign tourists in 2007, up 35 percent from 2006, said Xu Ting, a marketing clerk with the Yangtze River Three Gorges Tourism Development Co., Ltd.
2007 was also the third consecutive year for the dam to host more than one million tourists, according to Xu.
The dam area will see more tourists this year thanks to the great national events of the basic completion of the Three Gorges Project within the year and the Olympic Games in August, Xu added.

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CHINA - Foreign Investment Eyes Chinese Tourism Market

chinahospitalitynews.com, December 24, 2007

At present, annual foreign investment estimates of RMB30 billion to RMB40 billion account for 25% of total Chinese tourism capital.
The National Tourism Administration of China said that during the period of the 11th Five-Year Plan, China plans to build 12,697 tourism projects with more than RMB1.78 trillion of investment, of which over RMB138.5 billion are from foreign enterprises.
According to media reports, Chinese tourism industry will maintain 10% of year-on-year growth, and individual tourism consumption will increase by 9.8% annually while corporate, group and business traveling grow by 10.9%. By 2010, China's total tourism revenue will account for 8% of its GDP.

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CHINA - Luxury hotel goes from five stars to no stars

chinaview.cn, 2007-12-13

A luxury hotel that lost millions of yuan to a swindling manager has become China's first five-star hotel to lose its star status after a re-evaluation by China's tourism authority.
The Shenzhen Grand View Hotel, in south China's Guangdong Province, has admitted that its facilities and services failed to meet five-star standards, but vowed to try to win back its five stars.
The China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) has begun re-evaluating the star ratings of Chinese hotels, which used to enjoy permanent star status.
The CNTA initiated re-evaluations of star hotels last year, and hundreds of hotels, with four-star status or below, were blacklisted. It said the re-evaluations of star hotels would be conducted every five years.

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CHINA - Travel Agencies Adjusting Products To New Holiday Policy

Chinahospitalitynews.com, December 11, 2007

On December 7, the State Council of the People's Republic of China approved in principle the modification of legal holidays in China.
The focus is on one-day holidays by adding Tomb Sweeping Day, the Dragon Boat Festival, and the Mid-Autumn Festival. As the result of that, there will be five short holidays.
Many travel agencies say will unveil a series of new products as short-haul tours between 4 and 6 days to adapt to the new holiday policy. Zhang Xiaoqing, manager of marketing department of Beijing Jiedajiaqi International Travel Service, told local media that although May Day Golden Week has been reduced to one day, except for Tomb Sweeping Day, the other four short holidays (plus May Day) are possible to be new prime times for traveling.

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REGIONAL DEVELOPMENTS - Guangdong, Hong Kong, Macau Meet For Tourism Cooperation

Chinahospitalitynews.com, December 5, 2007

The tourism authorities from the three places agreed in the meeting to set up a rotation of chairmanship system under the Guangdong - Hong Kong – Macau Tourism marketing cooperation framework, with the Guangdong Provincial Tourism Bureau assuming chairmanship in 2008, while Hong Kong Tourism Board and Macau Government Tourist Office will be the chairman for 2009 and 2010, respectively.
In addition, the three places have reached consensus to strengthen promotion in overseas markets, in particular, to develop more multi-destination itineraries of Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau for the East Asian and Southeast Asian markets.

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CHINA - Survey: Tourists in Shanghai struggle to get satisfaction

xinhuanet.com, 20 Nov 2007

Shanghai's tourism industry still has considerable room for improvement, a survey conducted by the city's consumer rights watchdog has revealed.
The Shanghai Commission of Consumers' Rights and Interests Protection invited volunteers from surrounding provinces to rate their Shanghai experiences in terms of traffic, shopping, catering and accommodation. Their verdicts led the group to conclude some tourism-related services were not satisfactory. The survey involved 46 volunteers from six cities in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces during August and September, said the commission.

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AUSTRALIA - Aussies looking to cash in on China tourism boom

Malaysia Sun, 18th November, 2007

As China integrates with the global economy, its tourism industry is expected to boom in the next five years. The World Tourism Organisation forecasts that by 2020, China will be one of the world’s leading tourism destinations, overtaking traditional destinations such as France, Spain and the United States.By that time, it is estimated that China will receive 145 million visitors, 33.5 million of which will be foreigners. The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has registered a 9.8% increase in the number of Australians travelling to China*, and this number is expected to increase over the next two decades.

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CHINA - Travel Firms Bank on Jump In Getaways When Holidays Shift

online.wsj.com, November 19, 2007

China's government may give its citizens at least six more vacation days next year, and analysts say the extra leisure time likely will boost China's already flourishing travel-and-tourism sector.
Travel operators are betting on a shift to shorter, more frequent trips by rolling out new vacation packages, a sign that they believe the government will push through the holiday proposals soon.
Analysts say the biggest travel companies are the ones most likely to benefit from the overhaul because they have the scale and network to respond to the heightened demand for road trips and weekend getaways.

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REGIONAL DEVELOPMENTS - Urbanization: how will it impact on tourism?

T o u r i s m S c a n, Vol. 4 Issue 10 November 2007

Twenty-one major cities are reported to be in most danger of rising sea levels, one of the effects of climate change, as a recently released report by the Worldwatch Institute announced. According to the Associated Press, the most vulnerable cities will count at least an 8-million population by 2015. Cities identified as "highly vulnerable" i.e. in danger by climate change effects, while housing a total of 10% of the world's population are: New York, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Bangkok, Jakarta, Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro, Shanghai,
Cairo, Mumbai and Karachi, according to Australia's News.com. Unplanned and chaotic urbanization is taking a huge toll on human health and the quality of the environment, contributing to social, ecological, and economic instability. Of the 3 billion urban dwellers today, 1 billion live in “slums,” defined as areas where people cannot secure key necessities. An estimated 1.6 million urban residents die each year due to lack
of clean water and sanitation as a result.

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NEW ZEALAND - China to become New Zealand's 3rd largest tourism market by 2013

xinhuanet.com, Nov 13 2007

China will become New Zealand's third largest market in terms of inbound tourists after Britain and Australia by 2013, said Ed Sims, group general manager of Air New Zealand.
To meet growing demand, Air New Zealand would increase the number of its aircraft flying to the Chinese mainland to four by 2013, including two Boeing 777s and two 787s, said Sims.

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REGIONAL DEVELOPMENTS - Nielsen and PATA release findings of China Outbound Travel Monitor 2007

Asiatraveltips.com, 29 October 2007

With nearly seven in 10 Chinese leisure travellers accessing destination websites, and about six in 10 using online travel discussion forums to source information, travel operators and tourism promotional bodies will need an effective Internet presence to capture the opportunities presented by Chinese outbound tourism, according to a new research study conducted by The Nielsen Company in partnership with PATA.
The new China Outbound Travel Monitor 2007 reveals that traditional travel agents rank only second behind online sources (63%) as the most popular source of information for potential travellers while the use of traditional media is found to be much lower (40%) for newspapers and magazines.



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CHINA - to build world's largest national park

chinadaily.com.cn, 2007-10-15

Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has planned to build the world's largest national park by integrating the scattered neighboring tourist resorts into a whole.
The Kanas Geological Park, now around 1,000 square kilometers, will be expanded to about ten times larger in a few years after incorporating the nearby tourist regions and grassland, said Tan Weiping, head of the park administration committee.
Tan said under a new tourism development plan, the Tiere Keti town of Kaba County and the Hom Kanas town of Burqin County will be included in the new national park, which s expected to replace America's Yellowstone National Park, covering an area of about 9,000 square kilometers, to become the world's largest.
"The new national park is helpful to protect the unique natural scenery, wildlife and cultural relics here," said Tan.

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China - ETHNIC KAZAKHS TO PONDER FUTURE AMID TOURISM BOOM

Eurasianet.org, 10/05/07

Chinese rule and an influx of people from other parts of the country have forced lifestyle changes upon Xinjiang’s Kazakhs, who have for centuries lived a nomadic existence. The jewel of Xinjiang’s Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture is Kanas, a crescent-shaped glacial lake tucked into mountains not far from the point where the borders of China, Russia, Mongolia and Kazakhstan converge. The lake is surrounded by thick taiga, giving way to sweeping meadows. Rich in resources and with abundant water supplies, it is a prime area for the livestock breeding that sustains nomadic families.
This natural beauty now threatens the nomadic way of life, as tourists have begun flocking to Lake Kanas. Paved roads now reach the lake and beyond, running alongside tracks used by nomads to move between winter and summer pastures. Yurts -- the round, felt tents in which the nomads live -- are flanked by luxurious hotels painted in garish orange and yellow hues, conspicuous against the deep green taiga.

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CHINA - 120 million Chinese celebrate Golden Week

CanWest News Service, October 01, 2007

At least 120 million Chinese were on the move during the weekend, filling seats in every plane, boat, train, bus and car available to take advantage of Golden Week, which officially starts today, China's National Day.
They've gone en masse to shop in Hong Kong, to gamble in Macao, to lie in the simmering autumn sunshine on Hainan Island, to visit Shangri-La in Yunnan Province and to Beijing to see the wonders of the Forbidden City and the Summer Palace. Others have just gone home to the provinces to see families they only have the leisure to visit once or twice a year.
One way or another, however, China's population is on holidays. Almost all 1.3 billion of them.
"It's the time of the year you absolutely don't want to travel," an ex-pat businessman advises. "It's crazy. Stay put and enjoy the peace and quiet."

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CHINA - to invest 26.9 bln yuan to develop tourism in Three Gorges

China Daily Online, September 17, 2007

China's Three Gorges Dam region will receive 26.9 billion yuan (3.5 billion U.S. dollars) from 2007 to 2020 to develop tourism to provide jobs for people relocated for the project.The investment aims at realizing the government's plan to build tourism into the pillar sector in the Three Gorges Dam region, in order to generate 20 billion yuan, or 24.7 percent of the area's GDP by 2020.
The Three Gorges tourism development plan, which outlined the investment schedule, issued by the National Development and Reform Commission, has been approved by a group of experts in tourism and city planning organized by the government.

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CHINA - China Contact Survey

ForImmediateRelease.Net, September 17, 2007

ChinaContact, a leading consultancy on China market access for the tourism sector, has launched the first ever global survey of the travel industry's readiness for Chinese tourists. This survey will provide a snapshot of what travel organisations have been or are intending to do to prepare for the growth in tourism coming from China. The data is valuable for destinations to assess the market and for travel companies to understand the trends and realise where investment is needed. Tourism from China is growing at 14% this year, with forecasts for strong growth until 2020. Recent media reports of an imminent tourism deal between China and the US are prompting renewed urgency to prepare for Chinese visitors. Competition for Chinese tourists is becoming fierce with 92 destinations now approved for marketing travel in China and further 40 that have signed bilateral tourism agreements.

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CHINA - closes scenic mountain peak to recover from tourism

USAtoday.com, 21-8-2007

Chinese tourism authorities have closed one of the peaks on popular tourist attraction Huangshan mountain for three years to allow vegetation to recover from the hordes of tourists who visit the UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The barring of visitors to Danxia Feng, or "Purple Cloud Peak," is part of a revolving series of closures of sites on the mountain, located in Anhui province, about 745 miles south of the Chinese capital, Beijing.
Another of the mountain's scenic spots, Shixin Peak, reopened to tourists on July 1 after authorities restored trees and shrubs. The official China Daily newspaper called the closure the "latest move to protect one of China's World Heritage Sites."

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CHINA - Foreign tourists to China up 18.47% in 1st half year

english.eastday.com, 5/8/2007

Nearly 12.12 million foreigners came to the Chinese mainland for sightseeing from January to June, up 18.47 percent year-on-year, according to the latest figures from the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA).
The growth rate more than tripled the 6.1-percent increase for all inbound tourists to the Chinese mainland, who added up to 63.37 million in the first half of the year.
It also overtook the 4.22-percent rise for tourists from Hong Kong, 0.56-percent rise for tourists from Macao and 8.84-percent rise for tourists from Taiwan.
CNTA figures revealed that foreign tourists came mainly from 16 countries, with tourists from the Republic of Korea registering the rapid growth of 30.62 percent, followed by India 16.48 percent, and Russia, 15.73 percent.

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