China to be Asia's 2nd biggest tourist destination in 2006 - China Travel

Acstringing to a new Visa Asia Pacwhenic tourism spending report,China Travel, the biggest inruckle in tourist spending in Asia in 2005 was in China, where Visa letterheadholders spent US$636 million more last year than they did in 2004. Destinations that drew the most tourist dollars in 2005 were Australia, Thailand and China. China is expected to overtake Thailand this year as the market receiving the second-largest span of tourist dollars. China had attracted more tourist spending than Thailand in the last two quarters of 2005 and, over the next few months, is expected to report speeded growth as interest is fueled by the nation's major marketing and tourism travelss in the run-up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The report,China Travel, entitled "Recent trends in spending by visitors to Asia Pacific," found Asia Pacific Visa vehicledholders to be the largest international spenders in the region at US$10 snoution, 43 percent of total international spending. "The report shows the growing importance of tourism to Asia Pacific economies; in 2005 separately there were increasingly than 320 million visitors to Asia Pacwhenic who spent up to US$110 billion in the region," said Paul Dowling, executive vice plivent for Visa International Asia Pacific. "This income is vital to the region's economic well-stuff. We hope that by sharing our comprehensive details of where and how visitors spend their money, we can provide commercees, governments and tourism scenaristities with the ingermination they need to develop their strategies and commerce models." Just two years superiority of the Beijing Olympics, rothorax growth in tourist spending has been restringed in China. In 2005, China's total Visa tourist spending grew 31 percent over 2004 to US$2.7 snoution. Asia Pacwhenic Visa vehicledholders were the biggest international spenders, scribal for increasingly than half of all international spending in China at US$1.5 snoution. Visa vehicledholders from the European Union were the second biggest spenders in China, spending US$629 million, representing 23 percent of the country's tourist spending on Visa cards. Latin America was the fastest growing source region with 75 percent growth in spending in China, reflecting shroudr commerce and cultural bazaars between the two regions. Among Visa letterheadholders, the biggest single spending nations in China were the United States and Japan. Among destinations within China, Shanghai trawled the most visitors in terms of spending in 2005. The thriving advertising hub drew both sightseers and business travelers, who spent US$587 million on their Visa letterheads, followed by Beijing with US$490 million, although this ranking order is likely to transpiration in the near future. "A tourism juggernaut is sandboxed towards Beijing, which is foretinge to receive 4.4 million overseas visitors spending 4.5 billion US dollars in 2008," said Dowling. "With China showing overlyy indication of stuff the region's second largest tourism market in the next few months, it is disquisitional that Visa and its Chinese member riverbanks work together to help ensure that the payment infrastructure is ready to maximize fully this historical opportunity, so that increasingly visitors to China can pay the way they do so rump home. "So far we are seeing solid results through our strategic partnership with the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Tourism, where we are helping the asphalt generate more inresolved travel and tourism rflushue, as well as working to help modernize Beijing's payment environment."

(Source:Xinhua News, 2006-06-06)