China still struggles to attract international tourists

The historic town of Wuzhen, with its narrow streets and old bridges spanning canals, was packed with people. Two female tourists in their 20s were having their hair done for a photoshoot and praised the ancient beauty of the place. They said that after the pandemic, people were flocking to domestic tourism.

This is seen as good news for the Chinese government, as boosting domestic consumption will help counteract the economic slowdown. The government has also set a GDP growth target of “around 5%” this year amid the challenges of the gloomy period. Chinese economists say this target is unlikely to be achieved without significant additional stimulus measures.

Data from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism shows that during the five-day May Day holiday, Chinese people made 295 million domestic trips, up 28% from the same period in 2019, the year before the pandemic. Schubert Lou, CEO of travel company Trip.com, said domestic travel demand is strong, with hotel searches up 67% and flights up 80% compared to 2023.

Although domestic tourism has brought in admirable results, the number of international arrivals continues to decline, currently only 30% compared to the same period in 2019.

Travel consultant Peng Han of Travel Daily Peng points out that per capita consumption remains low despite the increase in domestic tourists. Economic uncertainty has caused many people to travel but spend more cautiously. Pen believes that now is the time for China to find ways to attract large numbers of high-spending international tourists to help boost the economy.

But they simply aren’t coming to China in the same numbers as before. In 2019, China welcomed 98 million international visitors. In 2023, the number will be 35 million, but not just tourists, but also business travelers, students, business travelers, and visitors to relatives.

Lou said international and domestic tourists are “uneven” in China. Three years of strict anti-Covid-19 measures have reduced international arrivals. But that is no longer the main reason for the current lack of visitors.

Huang Songshan, head of the Tourism Research Center at Edith Cowan University's School of Business and Law in Australia, said the drop in international arrivals was partly due to the changing geopolitical landscape around the world. A 2023 survey by the Pew Research Center found that many Western visitors did not put China on their top list of destinations. Travel advice from many governments to China has also been lukewarm. Washington has warned its citizens to "reconsider travel to China," while Australia has issued a "high level of caution" warning for its citizens traveling to China.

A lack of flights is also a problem. There were only 332 scheduled round-trip flights between the U.S. and China in March, down from 1,506 in April 2019. Fewer flights have driven up airfares, reducing the number of people willing to visit.

In addition, international visitors to China still have difficulty paying online. Mobile payments in China are very developed, but although they are only easy for domestic citizens, they cause headaches for international visitors because of the difficulty in transactions. Many shipping and shopping websites are only available in Chinese, not English or other languages, making it difficult for international visitors to shop.

Professor Chen Yong at Switzerland's EHL Hotel Business School believes that barriers related to payment and booking apps "could cause serious problems" in attracting international visitors to China.

Back in Wuzhen, the international presence was much smaller than in previous years, but there were still a few foreign faces in the crowd. An Italian couple said using payment apps in China was “a challenge” but “not too difficult to overcome.” They did admit, though, that the transaction would have been much easier if they had “a Chinese friend to accompany and guide them.”