Chinanews, Shanghai, Mar. 20 – Shanghai residents, whose family income is regarded as moderate in Shanghai yet relatively high in China, have become the main force of China’s outbound tours, according to the Shanghai Tourism Industrial Report published last Friday.

 

Outbound tours among residents have already been regarded as an important indicator to gauge a city's economic development level and its residents' tourism preference. A random sample survey conducted by the Shanghai Municipal Tourism Commission shows that in Shanghai, group tours are still the main form for Shanghai residents when they travel. The number of individual tours is rising and they now account for 16.8% of the total number of outbound travels in Shanghai.

 

In recent years, as more and more Chinese cities open individual tours to other countries and regions, Hong Kong has become a popular place for mainland travellers. In 2006, Hong Kong kicked off the Year of Travel program. Prompted by this and the news that Hong Kong dollar's exchange rate had fallen below that of Renminbi, most mainland travellers rushed to Hong Kong. In Shanghai, since it is very convenient to travel to Hong Kong and the travel doesn't cost much, Hong Kong has become the favorite destination for Shanghai moderate-income group and individual travellers.

 

The survey shows that among all kinds of outbound tours in Shanghai, business tours take up the most proportion. However, some industrial analysts say that as Shanghai people’s living standards improve, leisure tours or sightseeing tours will rise to become the main form of travel for Shanghai residents in future.