International visitor arrivals to China declined in 2013.
According to the latest data from China’s National Administration of Tourism (CNTA), the country received 55.69 million overnight visitors last year – 3.5% lower than 2012. Including day visitors, the total was 129m arrivals – 2.5% fewer than the previous year.
This follows a 1.5% decline in total tourist arrivals experienced in 2012.
A CNTA official, quoted by the China Daily, attributed the downturn to “the weak global economy and the increasing cost of travel in China”. The continued tensions with Japan – one of China’s biggest visitor source markets – are also believed to be having an impact on the inbound figures.
China’s domestic tourism industry however, remains buoyant. The country registered 3.26 billion visits in 2012, up 10.3% year-on-year. Outbound tourist numbers surged 18% to 98.19m, making China the world’s biggest tourism source market.
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