admin According to China’s largest travel company Ctrip, Japan, Thailand, and Singapore were the top-ranked destinations as tourists from the mainland gave Hong Kong a miss.
Chinese government data showed only 6.07 million people traveled during the national holiday between October 1-6, a 15.1 percent drop from the corresponding period last year.
Analysts attributed this to Chinese tourists opting for a “staycation”, as 782 million people – a 7 percent increase from last year – chose to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China by visiting local historical sites.
For those who did venture abroad, Japan, Thailand, and Singapore ranked as the top three most-booked countries in Asia during the week, according to Chinese travel firm Ctrip, as tourists from the mainland skipped protest-hit Hong Kong for other destinations.
Japan remained the most popular destination for Chinese tourists. In the first half of 2019, the nation saw 4.5 million visitors from China, up 11.7 percent from the same period in 2018. In order of popularity, the top-visited cities were Osaka, Tokyo, Kyoto, Sapporo, and Nagoya, according to Japanese media.
Over the same week, Japan increased its sales tax from 8 to 10 percent, but Chinese shoppers – who accounted for 37 percent, or US$15.4 billion (S$21 billion), of the spending by international visitors to the nation last year – were undeterred.
Japanese department stores such as Sogo and Seibu celebrated the Chinese national holiday by holding golden week events and sales at 15 different branches across the nation, with food and art promotions targeting Chinese shoppers.
Chinese travelers to Japan want cultural experiences involving local customs such as temple tours, heritage sites, and cultural events, according to Emily Guo, a researcher at Hong Kong-based marketing research firm Cherry Blossoms.
Experts say Thailand – the second-most booked country during golden week, according to Ctrip – saw many repeat travelers return to the country. The nation saw 1.03 million arrivals from China in August, up 19 percent from 2018.
According to Alipay Mobile, the sale of “durian experience” packages for Chinese tourists looking to taste the spiky, pungent fruit at local farms increased by 60 percent in Thailand and Malaysia from last year.
Shopping remained on the agenda, too. Thailand ranked second for the highest volume of overseas transactions during the week, according to data from Alipay Mobile.
Most Chinese shoppers frequented duty-free shops, convenience stores, and local malls, according to local press.
Singapore remained a destination of choice for tourists from the mainland. The city was among the most popular “traditional destinations” for them, according to China’s culture and tourism ministry, with others including Malaysia, Thailand, Japan, Australia, France, Italy, and Russia.
July saw the Lion City break its record for the number of Chinese arrivals, at close to 390,000, an unprecedented 46 percent jump from the previous month.
Analysts have attributed this to a diversion of tourists from Hong Kong, but property agents such as Clarence Foo, associate deputy group director at OrangeTee & Tie, said some of these Chinese tourists were using the golden week as a chance to eye Singaporean real estate.
Magazine 
