Quality experiences, in-depth tours for smaller groups all the rage

At least five of my relatives and pals made short trips to Thailand recently. Now, that shouldn't come as a surprise if you have been tracking news. Thailand has emerged as one of the most popular overseas tourism destinations for Chinese travelers.

They have high demand for quality experiences, their latest pursuit. They care for privacy and tailor-made options. Needless to say, trips that offer just that are all the rage among them.

Compared with three years ago, before the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, Chinese consumers have been increasingly paying attention to having good experiences and receiving top-quality services during their overseas travels. Most travelers, industry sources said, now prefer in-depth tours at one destination.

In the past, most groups contained some 20 travelers each. But now, travel agencies provide tours for much smaller groups comprising, say, two to eight people.

My cousin and her mother went on a trip to Thailand recently. They were considered a two-member group and provided with a tour guide and a driver. They both enjoyed the trip that offered privacy, a bunch of free-time options and convenient services.

"Chinese travelers have become increasingly partial toward small, private and tailored group tours. Most young people prefer to go abroad by themselves and join a group tour locally. We have cooperated with many suppliers who provide local services abroad," said Liu Li, director of short-haul outbound tourism at Tuniu Corp, a Nanjing, Jiangsu province-based online travel agency.

"Many middle-aged and elderly Chinese travelers have a need for safety and convenience, so they choose to take group tours that offer a guide who can accompany them right from the start, at departure time in China," Liu said.

Compared with February, Tuniu saw orders from Chinese travelers for group tours in Thailand double in March. Besides, New Zealand and Egypt were also sought-after destinations for group tours. For self-organized "free-and-easy" trips, individual outbound Chinese mainland travelers chose Thailand, the Maldives, Bali in Indonesia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Macao, the company found.

From March 1 to March 20, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines and South Korea saw an increase in flight bookings from China, and the average price of flight tickets dropped. Most travelers departed from Shanghai, Guangzhou in Guangdong province, Beijing, Chengdu in Sichuan province and Xiamen in Fujian province, according to Qunar, a Beijing-based online travel agency.

From March 26, the domestic air travel market began to shift to the summer flying season, and the capacity of flights to Southeast Asian countries is foreseen continuing to increase.

In April and May, prices of round-trip flight tickets that connect a city in South China and Singapore could be as cheap as 1,200 yuan ($175) per person, down 70 percent compared with the price in early February.