More Mainlanders favour independent travel

By
Kam Leong

In Mainland China, the trend of independent travel is increasing, with a report on outbound independent travel showing that 70 per cent of total outbound Chinese travellers arranged their trips themselves in 2014, rather than using the services of travel agencies.
The report, compiled by Qyer.com, a Chinese website which provides budget travel plans and information on cheap flight tickets and accommodations, indicated that more than 77 million of last yearÂ’s 109 million outbound trips by Mainland Chinese were independently undertaken, which represents an increase of 20 per cent year-on-year, or a jump of 4.05 million, compared to 2010.
According to the report, the spending of independent Chinese travellers, however, had slightly decreased by 1.5 per cent year-on-year, amounting to 8,173 yuan (US$1,316) per head. They spent most of their money on shopping, which accounted for 28 per cent of their total spending, while transportation accounted for the second biggest proportion of total expenditure.
The increase in the number of Mainland Chinese travelling independently is due to the number of cheap flights, the report said, indicating that 59 per cent of independent trips were made on cheap tickets or other travel discounts, an increase of 30 per cent year-on-year.
In terms of destinations, 55 per cent of all individual travellers chose Asia as their destination last year, while Europe and North America attracted 29 per cent and 10 per cent of the total, respectively.
In fact, Macau has also received more Mainland tourists travelling here independently through the Individual Visit Scheme (IVS). In 2014, the Special Administrative Region received a total of 21.3 million Mainland tourists, of which 9.57 million, or 45 per cent, were independent visitors, according to MacauÂ’s Statistics and Census Service (DSEC).
The number of independent travellers that the city received last year represents an increase of 18 per cent year-on-year, or an accumulative growth of 45 per cent from 6.59 million in 2008.