Ocean Link, Delonix to invest in Japan’s hotel MONday chain
Asian private equity firm Ocean Link and tourism investment firm Delonix Group plan to invest in Japan’s Hotel MONday to help fuel expansion at home and in the Asia Pacific region. Ocean Link is one of the founding investors of Delonix, and its board of directors includes Delonix chairman Alex Zheng and Trip.com Group chairman James Liang as members, according to Ocean Link’s official website.
Qingming holidays drive tourism surge with initiatives boosting inbound travel
The upcoming Qingming Festival holidays, which fall from Thursday to Saturday, are driving a notable peak for the travel industry, with spring blossom tours attracting domestic tourists while initiatives draw significant numbers of international visitors to the country. The National Immigration Administration anticipates about 1.78 million passenger trips daily to be made through ports nationwide during the festival, also known as Tomb-Sweeping Day, which would be a surge of 74.5 percent year-on-year.
Chinese airlines plan more cross-border flights
Driven by improved travel policies, Chinese airlines are planning more flights to draw travelers as the summer-autumn flight season began on Sunday, as aviation data showed that inbound and outbound travel has now recovered to hitting 80 percent of 2019 levels. Air China said it will fly 448 routes during the new season, including 108 overseas routes, of which flights input to Europe will be higher than that in 2019.
Foreigners make nearly 3 million inbound, outbound trips to China in first 2 months
In the first two months of 2024, China recorded 2.95 million inbound and outbound trips made by foreigners, said an official on Friday quoting data from the National Immigration Administration. The previous period and a recovery reached 41.5 percent of the level before the COVID-19 pandemic. The changes are in part due to China recently expanding the visa-free countries.
Taiwan revises tourism goals amid cross-strait travel challenges
Taiwan is reassessing its tourism goals in light of challenges in cross-strait travel, with Tourism Administration Director-General Chou Yung-hui expressing concerns over a potential shortfall of 2 million foreign visitor arrivals this year, Central News Agency (CNA) reported. Chou indicated that if China persists in its ban on group tourist visits to Taiwan, the tourism target may need to be adjusted downward to 10 million. Full recovery to pre-COVID-19 levels of 12 million visitors is not expected until 2025, according to Chou's remarks to reporters.
Club Med rolls out global event to boost China inbound tourism
Club Med hosted its Lijiang Resort's first global event with the theme of "Dancing with Yulong (Jade Dragon)". Currently, Club Med operates 10 resorts in China. Lijiang and Guilin resorts are two iconic destinations. Another three mountain resorts which located in Changbaishan, Beidahu and Yabuli, provide professional skiing facilities, instructions and diverse snow activities, making Club Med a popular destination during winter season in China.
AirAsia targets China’s smaller cities like Xi'an in bet on budget-conscious fliers
Malaysian budget carrier AirAsia plans to start new routes connecting smaller mainland Chinese cities with Southeast Asia to tap a recovery in the country’s travel market, as consumers become more budget-conscious. It has also signed a deal with Ant Group that will create savings for Alipay+ users.
