Chinese travel demand back, Europe set to gain

BERLIN, Sept 24 (Reuters): Demand for foreign travel in China has reached its highest level in two years, the organisers of the ITB travel conference said, citing a survey in which some 80 per cent of respondents said they planned to travel abroad in the next 12 months.

A survey for the IPK travel consultancy, a partner of the conference, found that around half of those canvassed said they not only intended to travel abroad in the next 12 months but to do so more frequently than in the past, if possible.

Interest in travel to Europe was higher than seen in previous studies, when Chinese travellers favoured neighbouring countries, said the organisers of the ITB, one of the world's leading tourism fairs, which takes place annually in Berlin.

They attributed this to a catch-up effect after travel restrictions made Europe virtually inaccessible to Chinese tourists during the pandemic.