China’s tourists stay away – this is how Europe’s holiday regions react

Zurich, Athens, Madrid, Stockholm, Paris Whether Paris, Athens or Lucerne: it is a similar picture that is currently being offered in the tourist hotspots on the European continent. The hotels are well booked, people sometimes stand in line for a long time in front of the sights – only the number of tour groups from China is even lower than before the corona pandemic.

Unlike the luxury goods industry, for example, the tourism sector has so far not been able to benefit from the resurgent demand from China. According to data from the European statistical agency Eurostat, the number of overnight stays by Chinese tourists fell from 22.2 million to 1.6 million in 2021. There are no more recent data at European level.

But a look at the holiday regions of the continent shows that sales with Chinese tourists are far from reaching the pre-crisis level.