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January 23 2009
Hong Kong
As the long Spring Festival approaches, Hong Kong people’s appetite for travel appears to have been affected to some degree as a result of the hit by the recent economic turmoil, according to latest Nielsen research.
Economic downturn affects Hong Kong consumers from travelling
According to a Nielsen survey conducted online between 12 November 2008 and 3 January 2009 across Mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, only 35 percent of Hong Kong netizens plan to travel during the coming Chinese New Year holiday, a 16 percent drop from the Chinese New Year in 2008).
Comparatively, Mainland China and Taiwan netizens are more motivated to get moving over the coming Chinese New Year holiday. More than half of Mainland Chinese consumers (53%) said they planned to travel either domestically (42%) or outside China (11%) during Chinese New Year, a 10 percent increase compared to the same period last year (43%), and 46 percent of Taiwan consumers said they planned to travel.
“The Spring Festival has always been the most important traditional festival in China. It is an occasion for family reunions akin to the Christmas holiday in the West and therefore, many consumers still choose to travel with their friends and family in this holiday in spite of the declining economic situation,” said Dr. Grace Pan, head of travel and leisure research at The Nielsen Company in China.
The economic downturn appears to have started to impact holiday spending. According to the Nielsen survey, 50 percent of Hong Kong respondents and 46 percent of mainland respondents are feeling the pinch and planning to cut down on spending while on holiday.
Short-haul travel becomes more popular in tough times
“In these challenging economic times, Chinese travelers are looking for ways to save, including organizing trips themselves and planning short to medium haul trips,” said Dr. Pan.
In Mainland China, 36 percent of respondents said they would choose destinations nearby while 45 percent of Hong Kong netizens claimed they would choose a nearby destination if times got tough.
Among all Hong Kong netizens who planned to travel during the Chinese New Year, 35 percent chose Mainland China as their destination, followed by Japan (15%) and Taiwan (13%).
Among those Mainland Chinese netizens who planned to travel domestically, Sanya is the top destination with 21 percent planning a warm Chinese New Year on beautiful beaches, followed closely by Lijiang (17%). On the other hand, the cold weather doesn’t stop Chinese consumers’ passion for Beijing (16%) - the Olympic City is the third top destination in China.
For outbound travel destinations, Hong Kong continues to be the most popular destination with six in 10 outbound travel consumers planning a visit. Taiwan’s popularity as a travelling destination during Chinese New Year increased significantly to 29 percent, becoming the second most popular outbound travel destination. Another piece of good news for the Taiwan travel industry: 95 percent of consumers surveyed said that they are aware of the China – Taiwan direct flight and only 21 percent of respondents would not consider visiting Taiwan within the next two years. The top five most popular outbound travel destinations for mainland Chinese respondents also include Macau (23%), Japan (15%) and Korea (13%).
“Even though there are many apparent reasons to stay home this year, Chinese netizens value Chinese New Year travel and will stick to it as much as they can. In order for the travel industry to weather the current financial climate, it is vital to monitor the changing trends in travelers’ behavior closely,” Dr. Pan added.
About The Nielsen Company
The Nielsen Company is a global information and media company with leading market positions in marketing information, media information, online intelligence, mobile measurement, trade shows and business publications (Billboard, The Hollywood Reporter, Adweek). The privately held company is active in more than 100 countries, with headquarters in New York, USA. For more information, please visit, www.nielsen.com
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