German Travel Association president Albin Loidl emphasised the importance of Europe as a major source market for Chinese tourism in his keynote at the Sino-European Dialogue at ITB China 2026 on Tuesday, 26th May.
Loidl advised dignitaries and delegates in attendance that dialogue and mutual understanding are more important than ever in a conflict-ridden world and tourism is one of the ways to make these possible.
He declared: “Tourism has always been much more than an economic activity. Tourism creates trust; it builds culture and family; and tourism transforms the world.”
To move the discussion forward, Loidl shared several key insights on how China could attract more travellers from the European Union.
Destinations need to be fascinating
For many Europeans, fascinating destinations are important, specifically those whose landscapes are vastly different from those in their home nations.
Asia, with particular emphasis on China, offers locations that offer distance, complexity, and great points of interest.
However, in the case of Europe, the challenge for Chinese travel professionals lies in the fact that the region is actually several major and culturally diverse markets.
As Loidl explained: “German travelers behave very differently from French travelers. Nordic travelers differ from Southern Europeans. And, in general, they each ask themselves ‘What story will I bring home? What emotional value does this journey bring?’”
For these curious travellers, China could offer all the answers to their questions thanks to its millennia of history, along with the cutting edge technologies that have put it at the forefront of the global digital economy.
No rejection here
Loidl also cleared up a common misconception that European travellers reject China as a leisure destination.
As he put it: “Travellers do not reject China; that’s an important distinction. But going to China poses issues for Europeans even before departure. The challenges posed by visa application, flight costs and booking, and tourist systems that are difficult to navigate fall into this category.”
Nevertheless, the expansion of visa-free policies for several countries have sent a powerful message: China is open and welcomes international visitors.
Loidl went on to say: “From the perspective of the travel industry, I therefore believe that European travelers expect familiar and simple payment solutions, language accessibility, along with improved connectivity and communication networks. These may appear like technical details, but, in truth, these are conversion factors.”
Meaningful interaction
At the same time, European travellers increasingly seek meaningful cultural experiences.
They want to be able to interact with the local people and hear their stories as storytelling is a great bridge between those of different cultures.
Loidl said: “We have to build culture and history with the everyday life of locals. Let the visitors compare their own cultural settings with that of the people they are visiting and discover the differences and similarities. It's always great to witness that people share so much in common, no matter how near or far apart they are.”
In this context, China’s cultural richness, diversity, and scale of experiences are truly extraordinary, offering European travellers something completely different and enlightening.
With that said, the key to future growth for inbound tourism from Europe lies not only in active promotion of major destinations, but also education, accessibility, and emotional connection between travellers and locals alike.
