Gary Bowerman

Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

About Gary Bowerman

I am Director of Check-in Asia, a tourism intelligence, content & strategic marketing firm with bases in Hong Kong, Shanghai & Kuala Lumpur. I also co-host The South East Asia Travel Show podcast.

Author of The New Chinese Traveler: Business Opportunities from the Chinese Travel Revolution, and a media commentator on Asian travel economics & consumer trends.

Previously a travel researcher in Central America, Editorial Director in London & consultant for the American Society of Travel Agents, I moved to Shanghai in 2004.

I spent 2 years as Editor of Shanghai Business Review, was a columnist for CNN Traveller & contributed to Business Traveler, Condé Nast Traveller, Luxe Guides, Zagat, Travel + Leisure & Forbes Travel Guide.

In 2007, I co-founded Scribes of the Orient, a business content agency. We later launched Check-in Asia, a speciality travel & hospitality division that works with clients including Hyatt Hotels, Four Seasons Hotels, The Peninsula Hotels, Bulgari Hotels, OAG, JNTO, FCM Travel, Mintel, HRS & Go+ Club.

– An experienced Asia travel analyst, I have produced reports on the tourism economies of South East Asia (2019), Laos (2019), Macau (2018), Australia/New Zealand (2018), China (2017), Pakistan (2017), Japan (2016), Malaysia (2015) & Myanmar (2014).

– Over the last decade, I’ve written several Op-Eds on Chinese & Asian travel trends, undertaken interviews for CNA, CNN, CCTV, ITV, Skift, The Straits Times, SCMP, WSJ, China Travel News & Hotel News Now, & spoken at events in Shanghai, Beijing, London & Madrid.

– In 2017, I was one of a handful of contributors to the Polarisation of Asian Travellers white paper.

– In 2018, I produced a White Paper on China’s OTA sector & a 20-year retrospective of Ctrip.

– In 2019, I published the China & India: Expansion of the Superpowers white paper, & Tourism Investment in South East Asia report.

– In 2020, I’ve produced monthly consumer trends updates on Vietnam & Indonesia, and rail infrastructure reports on Laos, Myanmar, Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia. I have spoken at Tourism Economics & Coronavirus seminars in Singapore & Kuala Lumpur, and undertaken interviews on COVID-19 topics for CNA, Skift, BMJ and ViuTV6 in Hong Kong.

Twitter @BowermanGary, @CheckinAsia @SEATravelShow


Co-Founder and Host

The South East Asia Travel Show

Jan 2020 - Present • 4 years 9 months
Written and hosted by Gary Bowerman & Hannah Pearson, two experienced KL-based travel & media specialists, The SEA Travel Show discusses the hot topics in the world’s most dynamic tourism region. Mapping out the evolving tourism landscapes of the 10 countries in ASEAN, we analyse the shifting influences on inbound, outbound, domestic & intra-ASEAN tourism. We also scrutinise influential markets, such as China, India, Korea and Japan, and assess the emerging opportunities and challenges for tra...

vel brands, airlines, hotels & investors.

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CEO/Managing Director

Check-in Asia

Jun 2016 - Present • 8 years 4 months
With more than two decades of experience in tourism, hospitality and consumer analytics and marketing, Gary manages Check-in Asia’s expansion across Asia. A former journalist and editor, he counts extensive experience of managing client projects, creative strategy and market research. He is an acknowledged expert in Chinese and Asian leisure travel and consumer trends. His clients including The Peninsula Hotels, Mintel, Tourism Philippines, Japan National Tourism Organisation, HRS and Condé N...

ast Traveller, Forbes Travel Guide, JLL & DKSH.

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Author

The New Chinese Traveler: Business Opportunites from the Chinese Travel Revolution

Apr 2014 - Present • 10 years 6 months
The New Chinese Traveler is an expert insider account of the explosive growth of Chinese tourism, and how international businesses can prepare themselves to benefit from the China travel revolution. Author Gary Bowerman has worked closely with travel and tourism brands in China and worldwide, giving him unique insights into the mindset of Chinese travelers and the approaches to connect with them. He explains the emerging trends and developments of Chinese outbound travel, plus the motivations, d...

esires and expectations of those travelers – and the rising tide of Chinese outbound investment related to travel and tourism.

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Publishing & Communications Director

Scribes of the Orient Ltd

Feb 2007 - Present • 17 years 8 months
Scribes of the Orient's projects are split into two categories: 1) collaborating with global publishers on content creation, research and delivery; and 2) assisting multinational companies, marketing and PR firms and hospitality groups on a diverse portfolio of media and communications projects, ranging from bespoke research, online publications management and preparing business-specific articles to creating ad concepts and writing corporate video scripts, speeches and press materials.

Editor in Chief

Shanghai Business Review

Feb 2005 - Present • 19 years 8 months

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