China Tourism Report: How To Win With Chinese Tourists In 2023
How to Win with Chinese Tourists is part of Alarice’s flagship series of consumer-focused insights reports, with a special focus on digital behavior, post-COVID travel rebound, and tourism commerce. In 2023, China’s tourism economy showed significant signs of recovery—and brands, destinations, and retailers worldwide are asking the same question: How do we prepare for the return of the Chinese traveler?
The data is clear: during the 2023 Golden Week Holiday, domestic tourism reached 274 million trips, a 70.83% year-on-year increase. For outbound travel, Ctrip, a leading online travel service platform in China, reported a 640% surge in international bookings, and cross-border flight purchases quadrupled. However, international air travel still lagged behind pre-COVID levels in Q1, making consumer confidence and digital engagement more important than ever.
After three years of global uncertainty and travel restrictions, Chinese tourists have returned—not just with wanderlust, but with evolved expectations, preferences, and spending habits. The China Tourism Report 2023, produced by ChoZan, captures this moment of revival and transformation in over 150 pages of exclusive insights.
To support global stakeholders—from tourism boards and malls to luxury retailers and duty-free operators, we map how Chinese tourists are traveling, spending, and choosing destinations in 2023. Based on consumer surveys, platform data, and social listening, this report offers the most up-to-date intelligence on one of the world’s most influential tourist groups.
Who Is The China Tourism Report For?
Destination Marketing Organizations and Tourism Bureaus
Looking to reconnect with Chinese outbound travelers and update
promotional messaging for post-pandemic expectations.
Retailers, Shopping Malls, and Duty-Free Stores
Seeking to understand how to attract high-spending Chinese
tourists, boost in-store traffic, and align with key shopping holidays.
Hotels, Airlines, and Local Experiences
Exploring how to adapt services, bookings, and loyalty programs to
meet the rising demand for customized, experiential travel.
Digital and Marketing Teams
Needing to localize campaigns on Chinese platforms like WeChat,
RedNote, and Ctrip, and understand what resonates with Gen Z
Chinese travelers.
Luxury and Lifestyle Brands
Interested in engaging Chinese tourists via omnichannel
experiences, digital storytelling, and retailtainment across borders.
KOL Agencies and MCNs
Wanting to identify the top tourism KOLs and platforms to execute
influencer campaigns and livestream content.
Airport Authorities and Transportation Providers
Understanding which domestic and outbound flight trends to
monitor, and how transportation choices impact travel patterns.
Investment Firms and Urban Planners
Analyzing the future of China’s domestic mobility, tourism hubs,
and second-tier city development driven by leisure travel trends.
What Will You Gain In This China Tourism Report?
A strategic overview of China’s tourism rebound across domestic
and outbound markets, including booking spikes during Golden
Week, CNY, and summer holidays.
In-depth profiles of key tourist segments—from group tours and
pet-friendly travelers to Gen Z soloists and middle-class adventure
seekers—revealing how motivations and behavior have changed.
Consumer insights into preferred destinations, hotels, payment
methods, local services, and digital discovery channels that
influence pre-trip planning and on-site engagement.
A full breakdown of the Chinese digital ecosystem for tourism,
including leading OTAs like Ctrip and Mafengwo, and social
platforms like RedNote and WeChat.
Best practices for travel-focused digital marketing in China, from
travel livestreaming and KOL collaborations to WeChat
mini-program campaigns.
An up-to-date travel calendar for 2023-2024, including Golden
Week, Double 11, summer breaks, and more—ideal for aligning
marketing timelines and cross-border promotions.
Step-by-step guidance on how to attract, serve, and retain Chinese
tourists—domestically and abroad—across product, service, and
digital touchpoints.
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Key Highlights Of The China Tourism Report
Part 1: A Reopened Market With Renewed Demand
Chinese tourists did not stop exploring—they simply shifted their destinations. Domestic tourism boomed during pandemic years, and this appetite for exploration remains. Travelers now prefer short-haul, high-frequency trips, often within driving distance or second-tier cities.
Travelers are also more experience-driven. The report notes a shift from “visitor” to “experiencer,” with preferences moving toward boutique stays, nature immersion, and wellness-focused itineraries. Cities like Chengdu, Hangzhou, and Qingdao are rising stars thanks to rich cultural storytelling and localized branding.
Unlike before, many travelers now expect flexible booking, digital concierge services, and multilingual guides, often accessible via WeChat or RedNote. Businesses must offer seamless mobile experiences, contactless payments, and personalized recommendations—especially for Gen Z and Millennial travelers.
Part 2: Traveler Profiles: From Staycationers To Adventurers
The report introduces eight Chinese traveler archetypes: Group Tour Travelers, Event-Based Travelers, Bootcamp-Style Travelers, Families with Children, Staycationers, Pet-Friendly Explorers, Offbeat Adventurers, Self-Driving Tourists.
Each segment is tied to specific behaviors, such as high photo-sharing rates, interest in cultural experiences, or preference for remote destinations. For instance, pet-friendly travel has spiked since 2022, with hotels and transport services adapting their facilities. Meanwhile, “bootcamp” tourists prioritize fast, intense exploration—a full city visit in 48 hours, with heavy RedNote posting throughout.
This segmentation helps businesses tailor campaigns, service offerings, and product packages for the right audience—whether through influencer seeding, loyalty programs, or cross-promotion with experience providers.
Part 3: Tourism Marketing: Where China Plans Its Next Adventure
Tourism discovery in China is fully digital-first. The report explores the leading platforms shaping travel planning and booking behavior:
Online Travel Agencies (OTAs)
Ctrip, Qunar, Fliggy, and Mafengwo continue to dominate pre-trip research and booking. These platforms now offer short-form video, livestreaming, and content recommendation engines tailored to younger travelers.
Social Media Ecosystems
WeChat, RedNote, and Douyin serve as inspiration engines. Travelers use them not only to document journeys but to plan routes, check reviews, and interact with brands via mini-programs. RedNote, in particular, has become a must-have for brands targeting outbound Chinese travelers looking for localized guides and “authentic” experiences.
KOL Marketing and Influencer Campaigns
Top tourism KOLs play a vital role in shaping destination appeal. The report names key influencers in categories such as hiking, family travel, gourmet tourism, and cultural heritage. Many now livestream daily itineraries or co-host trips via WeChat groups.
From travel agencies to boutique hotels, tourism operators must view content as part of the sales funnel—building emotional connection before conversion. Top-performing campaigns in the report used immersive visuals, local dialects, and behind-the-scenes hotel content to outperform generic brand ads.
Part 4: Chinese Tourist Insights: Behavior, Services, And Spending Power
This section unpacks how tourists interact with every stage of their journey, highlighting key trends and preferences.Destinations are evolving as nature, nostalgia, and novelty become increasingly important. Preferences are shifting away from mega-cities towards regional towns rich in culture and culinary experiences.
In terms of accommodation, travelers now favor experience-driven options. Design hotels, themed guesthouses, and wellness resorts that resonate with social media aesthetics are gaining popularity.
Dining experiences have transformed into destinations in their own right. Restaurants that offer aesthetic appeal, signature local dishes, or engaging chef storytelling tend to outperform their competitors. Retailers that employ Chinese-language staff, accept mobile payments, and provide good lighting for photo opportunities see higher conversion rates.
Payment methods remain focused on Alipay, WeChat Pay, and UnionPay, which dominate the landscape. Tourists expect QR-based transactions even in rural areas, and brands that do not support these payment options risk creating friction at the point of sale.
Transportation trends show a surge in self-driving among middle-class Gen Z and Millennial travelers. Car rental services, gas stations, and rest stops are becoming increasingly important touchpoints, particularly during national holidays.
This section includes social listening data indicating that over 60% of Gen Z tourists consult platforms like RedNote and WeChat before making spontaneous itinerary changes, emphasizing the role of digital engagement in influencing travel decisions
Part 5: Strategy Toolkit Of Content, Platforms, And Timing
The free China Tourism Report offers tactical advice for businesses:
- How to structure a content calendar around peak
travel periods, including summer, Golden Week,
Double 11, and Chinese New Year.
- How to structure a content calendar around peak
- Examples of tourism campaigns using gamified
WeChat mini-programs to drive pre-booking or
walk-in store visits.
- Examples of tourism campaigns using gamified
- How luxury brands and malls have designed
cross-border tourist experiences by integrating
Tmall storefronts with airport pickups, QR
redemption, and live WeChat concierge chats. - A checklist for brands to evaluate their readiness
for the return of outbound Chinese
tourists—from language accessibility to
livestream capability
- How luxury brands and malls have designed
What stands out here is that the traditional funnel has collapsed: travel inspiration, booking, sharing, reviewing, and re-engagement often happen within the same platform. Businesses that silo content creation from conversion will fall behind.
Part 6: The Rise Of Value-driven Experience Seekers
Gen Z and Millennial Chinese travelers are the dominant force shaping tourism preferences today. Their trips are curated around identity, self-expression, and digital storytelling. They favor boutique stays, nostalgic aesthetics, and immersive cultural activities—prioritizing meaning over materialism. On platforms like RedNote and Douyin, they treat travel as both inspiration and social content creation.
These travelers rely heavily on UGC, micro-influencer recommendations, and immersive brand narratives. RedNote search volumes for terms like “film-filter stays” and “aesthetic cafes” have surged, showing how content now drives destination discovery. Short-form video, daily vlogs, and peer-to-peer reviews are more persuasive than traditional ads or OTA listings.
Brands that resonate with this audience lean into emotional storytelling, mobile-first UX, and influencer amplification. A successful example from the report highlights a boutique hotel in Chengdu that collaborated with a RedNote influencer to design themed rooms based on trending subcultures—resulting in a waitlist for bookings and viral UGC. To reach this group, brands must see platforms not as channels, but as destinations themselves.
Part 7: Rethinking Cross-border Touchpoints
Outbound travel is making a powerful comeback. Chinese tourists are once again heading to Japan, Thailand, and Europe, but their behavior has changed. They now expect brands and destinations to meet them where they are—on familiar platforms like WeChat, RedNote, and Douyin. Rather than traditional travel brochures, they want mobile-native experiences, WeChat check-ins, and QR-triggered offers.
The report showcases a Bangkok mall that livestreamed private shopping sessions through WeChat and used Mandarin-speaking hosts to provide real-time service. Meanwhile, a Japanese skincare brand activated vending machine displays with QR-linked coupons that connected users to its Tmall flagship. These seamless experiences proved more effective than conventional store signage or in-flight catalogues.
Travelers expect continuity: the same loyalty points, payment methods, and mobile experiences they use at home. Businesses must go beyond translating brochures—they must localize presence.
Part 8: Beyond Tourism—how Travel, Lifestyle, And Retail Collide
Tourism is no longer an isolated industry. In China, travel has evolved into a cross-sector consumer journey that merges lifestyle, shopping, wellness, and entertainment. Tourists want to be inspired, connected, and rewarded at every step. As a result, brands in fashion, beauty, and even tech are repositioning travel as a cultural touchpoint rather than a seasonal trend.
One beauty brand in the report used a travel-themed WeChat mini-program to highlight “beauty hotspots” across a major city. Customers could scan QR codes in the physical environment, test AR filters, and collect points for use online or at duty-free counters. The result was a 28% spike in engagement and 45% uplift in cross-platform conversion—a blueprint for merging tourism with omnichannel retail.
To succeed, brands need to move beyond department silos and align travel activations with digital marketing, product strategy, and CRM. Chinese travelers don’t separate shopping from sightseeing. Businesses that build holistic journeys—before, during, and after the trip—will be best positioned to foster long-term loyalty and cultural relevance in a rapidly transforming global market.
About The Authors:
Ashley Dudarenok
Editorial Team
Ashley
Founder of ChoZan & Alarice
Sabba
Marketing Manager
VIcky
Digital Marketing Executive
AMELIE
Insight Executive
About The Contributors
ADA XU
Regional Director (Europe & Middle-East) at FLIGGY
WOLFGANG GEORG ARLT
Founder and Director of COTRI China Outbound Tourism Institute
SUSAN DING
Marketing Manager at Trip.com Group
NATHAN PETRALIA
Managing Director at Merkle Hong Kong
CHERRY HUANG
General Manager of Alipay+ Offline Merchant Services, Ant Group
OLIVER SEDLINGER
CEO and Co-founder of Sedlinger & Associates Ltd
DANNI LIU
Founding Partner at iBlue Communications
PATRICE SIMEON
Global Account Manager at Global Blue Holding
PEGGY LI
CEO & Chief Troubleshooter at SPS:Affinity - Strategic Partnership Solutions
EVGENY PANCHENKO
Tourism and Destination Marketing Expert
DEANA GAO
Founder and CEO of China Gravy
BENJAMIN CAVENDER
Managing Director and Head of Strategy of China Market Research Group
What Do We Do?
At ChoZan, we help global destinations, retailers, and experience providers win with Chinese tourists—across both
domestic and outbound travel. With 15+ years of expertise in China’s digital transformation and consumer behavior, we
empower brands to adapt to the fast-evolving tourism landscape shaped by social media, mobile-first discovery, and
cultural shifts.
We specialize in connecting travel, content, and commerce, enabling our clients to understand the new generation of
Chinese tourists, activate campaigns across WeChat, RedNote, Ctrip, Mafengwo, and Douyin, and build long-term brand
equity through digital storytelling, platform localization, and retail-tourism integration.Whether you’re building a global destination strategy, revamping your RedNote presence, or launching a seasonal WeChat mini program, we help you meet Chinese travelers where they are—and where they’re headed next
CHINA LEARNING EXPEDITIONS
We organize China Learning Expeditions—bespoke tours designed to help leaders of the world’s top companies immerse themselves in China’s digital ecosystem and gain a deeper understanding of local market trends, competitors, and technologies. Our clients, including Coca-Cola, InMobi, and Deckers, have relied on these expeditions to stay ahead of market developments and gain insights into China’s evolving landscape.
TRAINING FOR TEAMS
Our specialized training programs equip global and local marketing, e-commerce, and commercial teams with the skills needed to thrive in the Chinese market. We have successfully empowered leading companies like Disneyland, Richemont, and Shiseido to excel in social commerce, digital marketing, and consumer engagement.
CHINA RESEARCH
Our China Research services deliver in-depth consumer insights, market analysis, and strategic advice, helping businesses make informed, data-driven decisions. Trusted by brands like Johnson & Johnson and HSBC, we decode the complexities of China’s market, providing clear pathways for growth.
CONSULTING & EXPERT CALLS
Through our Consulting & Expert Calls, we connect businesses with top industry experts who offer tailored advice on addressing the most pressing challenges in China. Companies like DFS, Adobe, and Colgate-Palmolive have benefited from our strategic guidance and access to leading thought leaders in the industry. Together, we navigate the exciting opportunities presented by the Chinese tourism market.
GET YOUR FREE CHINA TOURISM REPORT
Want to win with Chinese travelers in 2023 and
beyond?
Download the China Tourism Report 2023 and
gain the insights you need to stay one step ahead
in the fast-changing Chinese travel landscape.
Faq
What is the China Social Commerce Report 2023 about?
The China Tourism Report 2023 is a 150+ page deep dive into the fast-evolving travel behavior of Chinese tourists, both domestically and abroad. It explores travel demand recovery post-COVID, Gen Z and Millennial travel preferences, popular platforms like Mafengwo and RedNote, and how brands can engage Chinese tourists across the full discovery-to-purchase journey. From cross-border travel trends to consumer shopping behavior at duty-free stores, this report provides comprehensive tourism intelligence.
Why is the China Tourism Report 2023 unique?
Unlike generic tourism industry outlooks, this report combines frontline social listening, first-party data, and sector-specific case studies to decode what Chinese tourists really want. It focuses on how destinations, retailers, and experience brands can activate cultural relevance and platform fluency. With insights into tourism KOL activations, digital itinerary design, and on-the-ground conversion strategies, it offers practical tools—not just predictions.
Is the China Tourism Report 2023 free to download?
Yes. The full report is available as a free PDF download. Inside, you’ll find strategy frameworks, content calendars, platform tips, and retail-tourism integrations you can start applying immediately to attract and convert Chinese tourists.
What’s new in the 2023 edition?
This year’s edition reflects the post-pandemic reopening of Chinese borders, the Golden Week travel boom, and the surge in outbound bookings. It also features new insights into digital destination discovery, the role of RedNote influencers in itinerary planning, and how livestreams and WeChat campaigns are shaping travel intent. You’ll also find updated travel calendar forecasts and profiles of emerging tourist segments like Super Dads.
Which platforms does the China Tourism Report 2023 cover?
The report offers a detailed look at how Chinese tourists use platforms such as Mafengwo, Ctrip, RedNote (Xiaohongshu), Douyin, and WeChat to plan, book, and share travel experiences. It also compares travel discovery habits between domestic and outbound travelers and offers tips for optimizing cross-platform campaigns.
How does the report help with destination marketing and retail-tourism integration?
You’ll learn how brands and destinations are using private traffic tactics, RedNote storytelling, and social commerce features on WeChat and Douyin to turn travel interest into footfall. The report also explores how tourist-facing retailers use livestreams and mini-programs to drive pre-trip and in-trip conversions.
Are there industry-specific insights?
Absolutely. The report covers best practices for travel retailers, cultural attractions, luxury brands, hospitality, F&B, and even duty-free shopping hubs. Case studies from major travel nodes—including Hainan and Hong Kong—reveal how different industries tailor offers to different tourist profiles.
Does it include tools or content strategies?
Yes. The China Tourism Report outlines tools and content strategies used to engage Chinese tourists across pre-travel, in-destination, and post-travel phases. From QR code mini-programs and RedNote trip diaries to interactive WeChat campaigns and localized TikTok-style short videos, the report explores the full ecosystem of Chinese digital tourism marketing.
How can I provide feedback or report an error in the China Tourism Report 2023?
If you have any feedback or spot an error in the report, please contact us at info@chozan.co. We value every comment and use your input to continuously improve our reports and insights.
How can I stay updated with future insights from ChoZan?
Subscribe to our newsletter for updates on Chinese tourism trends, consumer behavior insights, platform innovations, and upcoming reports on China’s evolving lifestyle, retail, and cultural economy.
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