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Brought to you by ASIA REGION 37 Shi Xiang Director, Chinese National Tourism Association CHINA SOUTHERN AIRLINES SOLIDIFIES TOP POSITION Chinese Tourism Primed For Continued Growth in 2018 Relaxed visa requirements, an excellent safety record, and a wealth of undiscovered new locations are encouraging a growing pool of international visitors to sample China’s unique culture and cuisine. Shi Xiang, Director of the Chinese National Tourism Association (CNTA) in Germany, talked to ITB Berlin News about the many reasons why tourists are flocking to the far eastern nation. He also explained the strategies his country is putting in place to continue China’s successful transformation into a major travel destination. In the first half of 2017, inbound tours to China reached 69.5 million, with the final total for the year expected to hit 143 million (up 3.5%). Popular destinations included Beijing, Shanghai, Xi’an, Guilin, Chongqing, Chengdu, Kunming, Shenzhen, Hangzhou and Sanya. Industry forecasts suggest that 2018 will be another good year for China. China has been investing heavily in its tourism infrastructure, with the sector viewed as one of the economy’s biggest bright spots (it is currently 11% of the national economy). Private direct investment in the sector rose by around 20% in 2017. What else is driving this growth? People are fascinated with the diverse culture of China, the nature highlights, ancient cities, and fast modernisation. The huge investment in the tourism infrastructure is starting to pay off and further improve the travel experience for international tourists. For example, there are more high speed railways and highways throughout the country, and better sanitary facilities for many of the high profile sites in China. Can you tell us about any recent travel promotions that have been especially successful at drawing attention to China within an increasingly competitive market? Last year we had our first ‘influencer and blogger’ trip that was a huge success. Twelve participants joined us on the journey to South China and were given an insider view of the country. They explored the canals and waterways of Suzhou, went for boat cruises on Hangzhou´s famous West Lake with its numerous temples, and visited the new Shanghai Tower – the second highest building in the world. People can follow the participants in this trip on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, or on our own accounts @ reiselandchina. This has been a great opportunity to share an insider view of China with a global audience. We are excited to announce that we will do a second trip this year to my home province of Sichuan. What are the key selling points of destination China today and into the future? China has so many different sights and attractions to offer – deserts, mountains, the ocean, beautiful bamboo forests and huge modern cities. You can visit an almost never ending variety of different and fascinating places. More and more these days, still unknown places have become the focus of foreign travellers. The Great Wall of China, the Terracotta Army (located in Xi’an) and the Yangtze River of course also still attract many international tourists Hall 26.c / Stand 314 China Southern Airlines Vice President Marketing Helen Liu talks about the airline’s plans for 2018 and why China Southern Airlines is the favourite airline in China. We currently operate 2,000 daily flights to 224 destinations in 40 countries and regions across the world. Through close cooperation with its SkyTeam member airlines, China Southern’s network spans 1062 destinations to 177 countries and regions. In 2017, China Southern, taking advantage of its large fleet for more than 750 aircraft, launched new long-distance international flights and added more flights for North America, London, Southeast Asia and South Asia. What makes your airline “different”? We have Asia’s largest and the world’s fourth largest fleet of 750 aircraft, we carried 126 million passengers in 2017 and have the best safety record in China’s civil aviation industry. We have formed an extensive network with Guangzhou, Beijing, Urumqi and Chongqing as hubs, covering all of China, radiating throughout Asia and linking Europe, America, Oceania & Africa. Helen Liu Vice President, China Southern Airlines Tell us more about the Canton Route. In Guangzhou, our main hub, we are committed to building the “Canton Route” with comprehensive transfer services including “Through Check-in” and “QR code boarding pass”, to solidify our number one portal hub airline position for flights from the Chinese mainland to Oceania and Southeast Asia destinations. In 2017, China Southern transported 3.9 million transfer passengers from the Guangzhou hub, up 15.5% over the previous year. What new services did you launch in 2017? New services it launched in 2017 included a new website and new-generation onboard entertainment and connection system for new Airbus A330-300 and an upgraded Wi-Fi service for 15 aircraft Hall 26.a / Stand 110 ITB BERLIN NEWS • Thursday 8 th March 2018
