BEIJING, April 24 (Xinhua) — China’s tourism businesses should extend their services to serve more people as domestic travel remains a major contributor to the country’s tourism industry over the next five years, officials from the China Tourism Academy said Sunday.
Further, Chinese businesses should serve travel and tourism demands of a wider range of people, especially their core needs, in order to achieve further development, Dai Bin, deputy head of the academy said at the China Tourism Academy Summit 2011 held from Saturday to Sunday.
“To satisfy the needs of average …

China’s outbound tourism during the Spring Festival holiday enjoyed big increases, showing the consumption ability of Chinese travelers, industry professionals say, despite rising prices.
“It was very fresh and exciting to spend the traditional festival in Disneyland in the US,”said Zhao Jie, who works at the Beijing UTour International Travel Service Co.
Zhao and her husband were just back Thursday, after 10 days’ traveling in the US, with each spending 24,000 yuan ($3,640.00) on the whole trip. They were on a tour organized by travel agencies from Beijing and Guangzhou separately, all …

BEIJING – A record 56 million mainland tourists traveled overseas last year, Shao Qiwei, head of the China National Tourism Administration, said on Wednesday.
That number is 2 million more than an earlier estimate of 54 million, and is also an increase of 8.3 million over 2009.
In contrast, 55.7 million overseas tourists visited China and stayed for at least one night last year, up 9.5 percent year-on-year. In total, 134 million overseas visitors came to China, up 6 percent year-on-year, spending $45 billion in the country.
Meanwhile domestic tourists made 2.1 billion …

When 25-year-old He Fan watched Disney’s Finding Nemo she was captivated by the wondrous sights beneath the waves.
The English language teacher from Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region – the world’s most landlocked city – had only ever experienced 30 minutes of snorkeling before, albeit off the tropical paradise Indonesian island of Bali.
However, fuelled by those two experiences and a curiosity about marine life that she has nurtured since childhood, He splashed out on professional diving instruction and gained a globally recognized certificate of competence, despite knowing she …

Just a year ago, Chinese travelers could not do much online except conduct research. Buying travel was almost exclusively an offline activity. But that’s all changing quickly.
A growing number of the 404-million Internet users on the Chinese mainland are now making travel purchases online. And that growth will accelerate in the coming years, according to iResearch, which will lead to a strong surge in Internet outlets.
“And iResearch estimates that revenue from the online travel service market will more than triple between 2009 and 2013,” the company says.
The number of China’s …

The number of China’s outbound travelers is expected to reach 52 million this year, up 7 percent year-on-year, the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) forecast in a report issued on Friday.
From January to May this year, China’s outbound travel tourists totaled 26.8 million, up 19 percent over the same period last year, according to the report posted on the CNTA’s website.
The report attributed the outbound tourism boost to stable development of China’s economy and the appreciation of the yuan against the US dollar.
Further, the number of domestic tours throughout the …

The China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) and the U.S. Department of Commerce recently announced that starting on June 17, 2008, Chinese leisure travelers may travel to the United States in group tours under a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed by both countries. CNTA Chairman Shao Qiwei will lead the inaugural Chinese tour group on June 17 to Washington, D.C.
U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez said: “This MOU opens China’s growing market to U.S. travel and tourism industries. Now, more Chinese visitors can experience America’s hospitality, cultural diversity, and natural beauty. Increased …