Chinese tourists visit the United States and love the Big Apple the most

Chinese tourists visit the United States and love the Big Apple the most. With the substantial growth of Chinese tourists in recent years and per capita consumption in the United States ranking first among international tourists, the federal Department of Commerce recently...

With the substantial growth of Chinese tourists in recent years and per capita consumption in the United States ranking first among international tourists, the Office of Travel & Tourism Industries (OTTI) of the Federal Department of Commerce recently invited industry players for a conference call to discuss topics such as comparing other international tourist data, characteristics of Chinese tourists, existing problems in the industry, and consumption habits. According to data provided by Ron Erdmann, deputy director of the research department of the office, the number of Chinese tourists ranks ninth among the top ten countries currently visiting the United States, but it has grown the fastest, with an increase of 36% in 2011 compared with 2010, and an increase of 337% in the past ten years, exceeding all countries.

The state most favored by Chinese tourists is New York State, followed by California and Nevada; the cities most visited by Chinese tourists are New York City, Los Angeles and Washington. According to the 2011 International Tourist Survey Questionnaire, Adelman also pointed out that Chinese tourists and general Asian tourists show different characteristics. Unlike 43% of Asian tourists who mainly obtain information from travel companies, 35% of Chinese tourists mainly obtain information from the Internet, followed by travel companies. 55% of Chinese tourists come to the United States for the first time, 40% of them come to the United States for visiting relatives and friends, 30% and 27% for business trips and leisure. However, the rate of Asian tourists who come to the United States for the first time is 36%, 50% of them come for leisure, 21% and 17% for business trips and visiting relatives and friends.

The questionnaire also shows that the main travel activities of Chinese tourists in the United States include shopping, tasting food, visiting scenic spots and historical sites, amusement parks, etc. Adelman explained that the so-called Chinese tourists mainly refer to people who come to the United States with B1/2, E-1/2, F1/2, and M1/2 visas. Werner Escher, director of the South Coast Plaza in San Francisco, believes that "branding and promotion are very important to Chinese tourists, and businesses can consider using the influence of officials and celebrities." China UnionPay (China Wu Allen, marketing manager of UnionPay USA LLC, pointed out that according to statistics of its Chinese customers spending money in the United States, 23.03% of their spending was in New York City, followed by Honolulu, Hawaii and San Francisco accounts for 14.06% and 7.71% of the total consumption respectively; but if calculated by state, the three states with the highest total tourist consumption ratio are California (29.46%), New York State (28.08%), and Hawaii (15.77). According to Wu Allen, 47% of Chinese tourists mainly spend on jewelry, watches and silver products, and 45% in department stores; 71% of each transaction is less than 100 yuan, 22% between 100 and 500 yuan, and 7% above 500 yuan. ZJ Tong, president of the Institute of Chinese Culture in Chicago, analyzed that these Chinese tourists are called "New Rich" (New Rich). Many of them are coming to the United States for the first time. They are younger, generally have higher achievements, and like to shop. He also pointed out that Chinese tourists pursue unique travel experiences, such as "best", "biggest", "highest", etc.

They mainly obtain information through Chinese travel books, maps and first volumes, websites, and Weibo. When it comes to accommodation, they pursue hotel quality and services, such as drinking hot water, free Internet access, self-service laundry, Chinese breakfast, Chinese newspapers and TV channels, and Chinese-speaking staff. When shopping, they also pursue quality and service. The most important thing is "making them feel that they have value for money."

Tong Zhongjun also pointed out that the current main problems in the tourism industry are insufficient training of tour guides and errors in translation materials. The most common problems in translation include multiple translated names for an attraction, the translator does not understand the destination being translated, and the translation is printed and written in traditional Chinese.