A trade mission of tourism operators from Queensland and New South Wales will visit the Chinese cities of Chengdu and Beijing this week in a bid to capitalise on growing opportunities from the market.
The two cities were selected on the basis of their locations with Chengdu, the capital city of the Sichuan Province, considered the gateway to West China while Beijing is seen as the key gateway for Northern China.
The delegation of 34 Queensland tourism businesses and four regional tourism organisations is the largest ever group from the state to visit China, according to minister for tourism Jann Stuckey. They will meet with 200 travel organisations from across China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.
"China is Queensland's second largest and fastest growing international market according to Tourism Research Australia (TRA)," Stuckey said. "It provides Queensland's tourism industry with exciting opportunities for future growth."
TRA data shows 248,000 Chinese visitors travelled to Queensland in the year to September 2012, up 24 per cent year on year. Chinese visitors spent $449 million on their trips to Queensland during the same period, up 19 per cent compared to the year prior. It's estimated by 2016, visitor arrivals into Queensland from China could reach 429,000.
Meanwhile, Chinese visitor to NSW spent a record 10.4 million nights and $1.2 billion in the state last year, with numbers projected to rise 78% by 2021.
The trade mission runs from March 3 to 9.
