What do Chinese tourists want in 2023 ?

Chinese outbound tourism is back, and it looks different from 2019. After three years of closed borders travelers came back with new expectations, new habits and a stronger sense of what they actually want. If you work in hotels, travel or hospitality you need to understand who these people are in 2026.

How Many Chinese Tourists Are Traveling Now?

China made nearly 170 million outbound trips in 2019 according to the China National Tourism Administration (cnta.gov.cn). That number dropped to almost zero during the Covid years. Since 2023 numbers have been recovering fast. By 2025, outbound trips were back above 130 million per year with strong growth expected in 2026. Chinese travelers spent over $120 billion abroad in the first recovery year, a study from Ctrip.com confirmed.

The profile of today’s Chinese traveler is not the same as before. They are more experienced, more selective and much harder to impress.

What Has Changed: The New Chinese Traveler in 2026

During the Covid years, Chinese people could only travel inside China. Even the wealthy ones. This changed something. Domestic tourism became popular among groups who never considered it before. Hiking, camping, rural stays, food tours in second-tier cities… people discovered their own country and liked it.

Now that borders are open again these same people bring new expectations when they travel abroad. They want authenticity. They want experiences that feel special, not just famous landmarks with tour groups. They search on Douyin and RED before booking, they read reviews on Mafengwo (mafengwo.cn, China’s largest travel review platform) and they book independently more than before.

What Philip Chen Says About This

Philip Chen, a digital marketing expert who works with tourism brands across Asia, shared his view on the new Chinese traveler:

“The Chinese tourists coming back in 2025 and 2026 are not the same group from 2019. They spent three years inside China discovering local food, outdoor activities and boutique stays. Now they want that same quality when they go abroad. Generic group tours with bus stops at famous spots don’t work anymore for this segment. You need to offer them something they can’t find at home, something they will post about. If they can’t post it, it didn’t happen.”

Philip Chen, digital marketing expert

Case Study: How a Swiss Hotel Doubled Its Chinese Bookings

Marco Steiner runs a 24-room mountain hotel in Grindelwald, Switzerland. Beautiful location, good food good reviews on TripAdvisor. But in 2024 his Chinese bookings were almost zero. His website was in English and German. He had no presence on any Chinese platform.

In January 2025 Marco decided to do something about it. He contacted a Chinese digital marketing agency and set a budget of 3,000 euros per month for six months. The plan was simple: Baidu SEO to get found, a WeChat Official Account to build trust and Douyin content to create desire.

The agency translated his website into Mandarin and optimized it for Baidu. They created a WeChat account with posts about the hotel: the cheese breakfast, the hiking trails nearby, the panoramic terrace. Real content, real photos. Not marketing language.

Then they partnered with two Chinese travel KOLs who visited in March 2025. One had 280,000 followers on Douyin. She posted a 45-second video of the sunrise from the terrace, a cup of Swiss coffee in her hand. The video got 1.2 million views in four days.

Results after six months: 38 Chinese group bookings, average stay of 2.8 nights, average spend per person of 680 euros per night. Total additional revenue: around 72,000 euros. That’s a return of 4x on the marketing investment. Marco now keeps a Mandarin-speaking staff member during peak season and accepts WeChat Pay at the front desk.

“I was skeptical at first” Marco told us. “I didn’t think Chinese tourists would come to a small mountain hotel. I was wrong. They love the quietness, the nature, the food. They just needed to find us.”

Top 5 Things Chinese Tourists Want in 2026

• Free and fast WiFi. About 75% of Chinese guests check for WiFi before booking. They need it to stay on WeChat and share content in real time.
• Mobile payment options. Alipay and WeChat Pay are not nice-to-have. They are expected. Cash is confusing, credit cards feel old.
• Chinese-language information. Menus websites signage. Not everything needs to be in Mandarin but the important stuff should be. A welcome card in Chinese goes a long way.
• Unique local experiences. Cooking classes, local markets, off-the-beaten-path spots. They want content they can post. Instagram-worthy is now Douyin-worthy.
• A kettle in the room. This sounds small but it is important. Chinese guests drink hot water and tea constantly. If there is no kettle they notice.

Group Tours vs. Independent Travel

Before 2020, about 55% of Chinese tourists booked through tour operators. That share has dropped. Younger travelers (under 35) prefer to plan their own trips. They use Ctrip for flights and hotels, Mafengwo for itinerary inspiration and WeChat groups to share tips with friends.

Group tours are not dead however. Older travelers and families still prefer them. The market has split clearly into two segments and smart destinations know how to speak to both.

Quick Reference: What Chinese Tourists Want

Need	Why It Matters	How to Deliver
WiFi	They share everything in real time	Fast connection, no login friction
Mobile payment	They don’t use cards or cash	Add Alipay and WeChat Pay
Chinese content	Builds trust before booking	Baidu SEO, WeChat account, RED
Authentic experience	They want to post it	Local KOL visits, unique packages
In-room kettle	Cultural habit	Standard amenity, cheap investment

How GMA Can Help You Reach Chinese Tourists

If you want to attract Chinese travelers in 2026, you need to be present where they search and where they trust. Our team at GMA (Gentlemen Marketing Agency) works specifically on Chinese digital marketing for tourism, hotels and lifestyle brands. Here is what we do:

• Douyin (TikTok China) campaigns: short video content and KOL partnerships to generate desire and reach millions of Chinese users
• WeChat Official Account management: build your presence on China’s main messaging app, post articles, engage followers, run promotions
• Baidu SEO and PPC: be found when Chinese users search for your destination or hotel type on China’s main search engine
• RED (Xiaohongshu) influencer marketing: reach high-spending Chinese women and young travelers through authentic lifestyle content
• Chinese website design and localization: a fast Mandarin website hosted in China, built for Baidu, adapted for Chinese user habits
• KOL and KOC partnerships: work with the right Chinese influencers for your budget and your audience, from 50K to 5M followers

About GMA

GMA (Gentlemen Marketing Agency) is a Chinese digital marketing agency based in Shanghai, operating since 2012. We work with tourism brands, hotels, real estate companies and luxury businesses that want to attract Chinese clients. Our services cover Douyin, WeChat, Baidu, RED and Chinese website design. We have helped hundreds of international brands build real visibility in China. See all our services at chinesetouristagency.com/our-services.

Written by Claire, Chinese tourism marketing specialist at GMA. March 2026.