2023 China Tourism Facts & Figures

	2023 China Tourism Statistics	Rates Compared with those in 2019
Inbound Tourism Arrivals	82.03 million	56.45%
Inbound Tourism Revenue	USD 53 billion	40.37%
Outbound Tourism Trips	87.63 million	56.67%
Domestic Tourism	4.891 billion	81.38%
Domestic Tourism Revenue	CNY 4.91 trillion	85.69%

 In 2023, with the official conclusion of the coronavirus-related lockdowns, China comprehensively lifted its entry restrictions and systematically restored flight capacity. As a result, inbound tourism, which had been on hold, finally embarked on a path of resumption. However, this resurgence has been more sluggish than anticipated. The number of inbound tourist arrivals in 2023 was 82.03 million, merely 56.45% of the pre-epidemic figure in 2019.
 The number of Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan inbound tourists outpaced that of foreign tourists considerably. According to the statistics from China National Immigration Administration, in 2023, the number of inbound trips by residents of Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan reached 68.24 million, recovering to 81% of 2019. While the number of inbound trips by foreigners was 13.78 million, and the figure only was 36% of that in 2019. Influenced by political and economic issues, the inbound arrivals from the America were extremely pessimistic.

Furthermore, the imbalance within the inbound tourism market was evident in the swift recovery of business-related arrivals, which had significantly outstripped that of the leisure and tourism arrivals. A survey conducted by the China Tourism Academy indicates that among the inbound arrivals in 2023, the proportion of business travelers had notably increased compared to pre-pandemic times, and their recovery rate had been considerably faster than that of those traveling for sightseeing and leisure purposes.

This phenomenon resulted from multiple factors. Initially, during the early stages of reopening post-pandemic, the visa policy was stringent, using an appointment system with severely limited slots. Coupled with this, the international flight response was sluggish. To illustrate, consider the direct flights between China and the United States: in 2019, there were 48 pairs of flights daily; however, in 2023, it was 48 pairs per week. Although in November, the number of direct flights between China and the United States increased from 48 pairs per week to 70 pairs, it was still far from pre-pandemic levels. In addition, the prolonged closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic had resulted in a decline in foreign tourists’ favorability towards China. 
 As for the market share of inbound tourism destinations, the south remained robust and the north relatively weaker. The northeast inbound tourism market was the most depressed. In contrast, East China and South China maintained their potent inbound appeal, while Beijing's status as the capital bolstered the inbound tourism recovery of North China.
 In early 2023, as cross-border restrictions were gradually lifted, the outbound group travel firstly revived, bringing hope and confidence for the industry. However, in the second half of the year, influenced by multiple factors such as geopolitics and the economic environment, the enthusiasm in the outbound tourism gradually subsided and the prosperity index declined accordingly.  

Data from 2023 shows that the young and middle-aged groups are the mainstay of outbound tourism. Specifically, the number of people aged 22 to 41 accounts for as high as 8%. In terms of occupation, freelancers were the largest group of outbound tourists.

Talking about outbound destinations, the traditional popular destinations such as Hong Kong and Macao were as popular as before. 

When making plans for outbound travel, Chinese attached great importance to transportation. Accommodation, travel costs, and customs of the destinations also ranked high on their list of concerns. For instance, regarding accommodation choices, Chinese generally showed a preference for economy hotels, while the proportion of those choosing luxury hotels had decreased. Meanwhile, they looked forward to having a distinctive travel experience in an unfamiliar environment and desired comprehensive security guarantees. 
 In 2023, the domestic tourism industry witnessed a remarkable resurgence. The pent-up travel demand that had been stifled for three long years was finally unleashed. Traveling gradually became an integral part of people's life. 

According to the statistics from China Ministry of Culture and Tourism, in 2023, the number of domestic tourists reached 4.891 billion. This figure represented an increase of 2.361 billion compared to the previous year, surging by 93.3% year-on-year. It was a substantial growth, with the recovery rate reaching 81.38% of that in 2019, which was 6.01 billion. 

In 2023, domestic tourism revenue amounted to CNY 4.91 trillion. This was an increase of CNY 2.87 trillion over the previous year, surging by 140.3% year-on-year. Such a significant growth reversed the sluggish trend that had lasted since 2020. Moreover, when compared with 2019 before the epidemic, domestic tourism revenue in 2023 had recovered to 85.69%. The gap was notably narrowed, vividly demonstrating the vitality and potential of domestic tourism consumption.

The per capita consumption per trip in 2023 was CNY 1,003.88, an increase of CNY 197.56 compared to the same period in the previous year, with a year-on-year growth of 24.5%. By comparing the data from 2019 to 2023, it is evident that the per capita consumption per trip in China in 2023 reached CNY 1,000, exceeding the level in 2019 before the epidemic and hitting the highest point in the past five years.
 Holidays have always been peak travel seasons in China. Compared with the same period in 2019, the recovery of China domestic tourism during holidays had been on a gradual upward trend. For instance, during the May Day holiday and the Mid-Autumn Festival & National Day holiday, both the number of tourists and tourism revenue surpassed those of the same period in 2019. Notably, the 8-day long Mid-Autumn Festival & National Day holiday was the hottest ever in history.
 

	New Year	Chinese New Year	May Day	Dragon  Boat Festival	Mid-Autumn Festival  & National Day
Tourist Trips  (100 million)	0.53	3.08	2.74	1.06	8.26
Year-on-Year Growth	0.44%	23.1%	70.83%	32.3%	71.3%
Rates compared with those in 2019	42.8%	88.6%	119.09%	112.8%	104.1%
Tourism Revenue (CNY 100 million)	265.17	3,758.43	1,480.56	373.10	7,534.3
Year-on-Year Growth	4.0%	30%	128.90%	44.5%	129.5%
Rates compared with those in 2019	35.1%	73.1%	100.66%	94.9%	101.5%

See China Tourism Facts & Figures by Year: 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007