Upswing in bookings from China to Thailand
Newly released data from SiteMinder, the world’s leading open hotel commerce platform, highlights an increase in outbound reservation volumes to Thai properties from mainland China following the country’s relaxation of travel restrictions since January 8.
SiteMinder has seen a 108% uptick in net reservations from Chinese travellers booking stays in Thailand since mid-December and a 37% increase globally.
Thailand, of the markets analysed, is the country where reservations to SiteMinder properties are increasing the fastest, followed by Spain (84%), Vietnam (51%), Australia (51%), Singapore (44%), and the US (43%).
Sankar Narayan, SiteMinder Managing Director and CEO said, “Pent-up demand has brought about the rapid acceleration of international travel globally in the last 12 months, with China now becoming a noteworthy addition to that mix. As confidence continues to build and travel patterns normalise locally, we are seeing that it is the accommodation providers viewing technology as a vital component to their success who are the readiest to attract, host and delight a widening range of guests, now including travellers from China.”
Over the recent Lunar New Year holiday, leading global travel service provider Trip.com Group saw mainland China’s outbound flight and hotel bookings increase by over 400%, year-on-year. Southeast Asia stood out as the top destination for Chinese travellers over the holiday, with Bangkok, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Chiang Mai, Manila, and Bali the destinations receiving the most bookings, according to Trip.com Group’s data. Hotel bookings to Bangkok grew roughly 30-fold, year-on-year, with the average hotel booking price increasing by 70%.
Jane Sun, Trip.com Group CEO said, "The removal of mainland China border restrictions presents a huge opportunity for the industry. As providers up capacity in response to the opening up of the Chinese travel market, the re-integration of what was the world’s largest outbound tourism market will be a huge boon to the industry and global economy.”
Tourists from China made 155 million outbound trips worth US$255 billion in 2019, making them the largest outbound tourism market globally prior to the pandemic. In SiteMinder’s recently released Hotel Booking Trends report, Trip.com moved up one position to sixth on the list of the channels that brought the highest booking revenue to local hotels over the previous 12 months.
