China Outbound Travel Sets Record in 2017

The number of Chinese traveling abroad reached 130 million for the first time in 2017, representing a milestone for the country's outbound tourism trade. According to a report jointly released by China Tourism Academy and Ctrip, one of China's leading travel agencies, on Thursday, holidaymakers spent a total of $115.3 billion on overseas trips last year—an increase of 5% compared to 2016, China News Service reported. China is now the largest international tourist source for ten nations, namely Thailand, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, Russia, the Maldives, Indonesia, North Korea and South Africa. Furthermore, it has also become a major tourist source for the United States, the United Arab Emirates, Britain, New Zealand, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Canada, as well as the second largest for the Antarctica. The report noted that the strengthened Chinese yuan has contributed to the outbound tourism boom and expected that the favorable exchange rate factor to continue this trend in 2018.