CHINA: ELDERLY TOURISTS TRAVEL MORE THAN BEFORE

Under the influence of factors such as the end of the statutory long holidays during the year and seasonal changes, the Chinese national tourism market has become more rational, and the willingness of elderly tourists to travel has increased significantly.

According to the China Tourism Academy report, middle-aged and elderly citizens have become increasingly significant customers in the country’s tourism industry in recent years. The report indicates that in 2023, individuals aged between 45 and 64 will account for 902 million trips, representing 27.80% of all tourism activities and making them the largest tourist group in the market.

Since the end of the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday, air ticket and hotel prices have dropped, leading to a significant increase in the desire of middle-aged and elderly tourists to travel.

According to Qunar’s big data, only 7% of elderly people traveled this year during the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday. However, the proportion of elderly travelers gradually increased after the long holiday. In fact, after the Double Ninth Festival, the proportion of elderly tourists traveling exceeded 11%. Ctrip’s data also show that the number of people over 55 years old traveling this year has almost tripled compared to the same period last year, as of mid-October. The main consumer group for travel among the elderly is those aged 55 to 60, accounting for 60% of all travelers, while those aged 61 to 65 account for more than 20%.

As older people in China pay more attention to travel experiences, travel consumption in various places has become more quality-oriented recently.

According to a report by Ctrip, the elderly population strongly desires to travel and is willing to pay higher prices for better-quality experiences. They also prefer group tours and have unique spending habits. Another National Committee on Aging survey shows that China’s elderly population is expected to spend over 700 billion yuan on cultural tourism in 2023.

On the Qunar platform, senior citizens make up nearly 30% of bookings at high-star hotels. Additionally, their children book 30% of their seniors’ travel orders and prefer to choose higher-quality group tour products for them.

According to data from Ctrip, group tours are still the most popular way of traveling for elderly tourists, accounting for nearly half of all orders. Private group tours have also increased by more than three times year-on-year. Despite the increase in demand, the price of group tours has remained steady this year and has only increased by around 30% compared to the same period in 2022. Additionally, outbound travel orders for people over 55 in China have increased more than five times compared to last year.

According to Ctrip’s data, Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Chongqing, Nanjing, Tianjin, Wuhan, Xi’an, Kunming, Changsha, Suzhou, Shenyang, and other cities are the main tourist destinations for people who are over 55 years old. These cities are also popular tourist destinations.

Qunar’s big data indicates that Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Shenzhen, Wuhan, Changsha, Chongqing, and Shenyang are the main areas where elderly tourists come from. The Northeast region has seen a significant increase in the number of bookings made by elderly tourists.

Kunming, Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, Dali, Chengdu, and Jiuzhaigou in Sichuan, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen in Guangdong, as well as Sanya and Haikou in Hainan, have all seen a booking increase of more than 20% from elderly tourists compared to the week before the Double Ninth Festival. This makes them popular tourist destinations for elderly domestic tourists in China.