Chinese tourism overseas on the rise

Residents from the Chinese mainland spend $874 on shopping overseas on each trip on average, the most among Asian countries and regions, according to a survey released by Travelzoo Inc, a global Internet media company for travel and entertainment based in the US.

The survey had 4,000 respondents from the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan and Australia.

It also said Hong Kong is the top shopping destination for residents from the mainland while the US, France, Japan and Italy are also on their list of favorites.

Statistics from the World Tourism Organization show the number of Chinese residents traveling overseas will be more than 100 million by 2020.

The increasing number of Chinese travelers and their spending power is encouraging foreign tourism authorities and businesses to treat them seriously.

The European Travel Commission launched a Chinese portal earlier this year in order to explore the China market. It is now common to see signs with Chinese characters in overseas hotels, restaurants and shopping malls.

VisitBritain, which is the British tourism authority, launched a market campaign designed to tempt the Chinese on Oct 26.

The campaign features British people inviting people in China to visit Britain. The British people include chief yeoman warder of the Tower of London and the managing director of Liberty's, the well-known emporium.

British Airways Ltd is offering special fares to lure more Chinese to Britain.

VisitBritain also said China is "one of the UK's fastest growing tourism markets".