China, A Unique And Rising Mobile Travel Market

Sally White takes a look at how the Chinese marketing is evolving and finds that having local knowledge counts

Anyone looking at China’s travel business should bear one point in mind – just because it ranks as World No. 2 in terms on time spent on smartphones does not mean it is easily accessible. That time spent, says Chinese online news channel, People’s Daily, is mostly on videos, due to “lack of leisure activities”, rather than buying trips on foreign sites.

Apart from the barriers put up by local customers and government internet restrictions, many other factors make this a unique market.

Online travel leader Ctrip COO Maria Sun told Reuters that though Chinese travellers may research online, according to an international report from Worldpay merchant services and Opinium market researchers, just 25% of Chinese travellers booked through their mobiles. The bulk of Chinese traveller booking payment goes through traditional, local travel agents and tour operators, of which, the UNTO states, there are over 28,000.

To read the original press release, click here.