Shanghai -- China's newly wealthy rank travel as their top leisure activity, while spending time with their families places a distant seventh, according to survey results released on Thursday.

German car maker BMW was the top-ranked luxury brand, followed by French accessories maker Louis Vuitton and Mercedes-Benz, according to the survey of 604 Chinese whose personal wealth is estimated at more than US$1 million.

Australia was rated the top destination for international travel, followed by France and the United States, while the southern resort of Sanya was ranked the top domestic leisure destination.

The United States is the preferred country for international education, followed by Britain, Australia, Canada and New Zealand, the survey showed.

After travel, wealthy Chinese most preferred to spend their leisure time swimming or playing golf.

Family time was even lower than tennis and climbing, an apparent reflection of how the traditional Chinese family unit is splintering under the pressures of modern urban life.

The survey was conducted by the Shanghai-based Hurun Report, a firm specializing in tracking consumer tastes among the Chinese elite.