According to Alipay, the top digital payment and service platform, as Chinese tourists continue to travel abroad, the average amount spent by outbound Chinese tourists during the first five days of the 2023 China National Day holiday, from September 29 to October 6, has surpassed that of 2019.
When Chinese visitors travel abroad, shopping is still one of their favorite pastimes. The purchase of goods, such as skincare products and duty-free items, surpassed spending on all other activities as the period’s largest Alipay expenditure. The second and third highest spending categories, respectively, were lodging and food and beverages.
Chinese travelers are increasingly using Alipay’s range of digital travel services to enhance their trip experiences in addition to using the app to pay for goods and services. Currency exchange, Coupon Hub, tax return, and transportation were the most popular services among Alipay users over the first five days of the Holiday. Particularly, compared to the same period in 2019, the volume of transactions involving transportation increased by 16 times.
With the help of its partners across the world, Alipay now offers a full range of travel services to Chinese visitors traveling outside of China, including the ability to book hotels and plane tickets as well as other services like food delivery, taxi services, in-store payments, and tax refunds. In more than 2,000 cities outside of the Chinese mainland, Alipay users can order a taxi. Major retailers in France, Italy, and Spain are offering an additional 20% tax refund to their customers during this vacation. The Coupon Hub features deals from brands in most destinations, some of which are only available to Alipay customers.
Chinese tourists of all ages embrace digital technology for travel preparation and prefer mobile payments, with an overwhelming 84% anticipating using mobile payments like Alipay, according to a recent survey on Chinese outbound tourism. Chinese consumers prefer mobile payments over cash (55%), citing the simplicity and safety of mobile payments over cash (56%), discounts and other value-added services offered (60%), and transparency and advantageous exchange rates (60%).
Chinese tourists also favor individualized services like exclusive deals and shopping guidance in Chinese (83%). According to a study done by the Centre for Sustainable Finance Innovation at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, local businesses hoping to attract Chinese tourists may need to prepare for Chinese mobile payment methods and think about providing other value-added services specifically designed for Chinese tourists.
Based on overall Alipay purchases, the top travel locations this year mostly held true to those from prior significant holidays. Geographically nearby Asian locations like Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Singapore, and Malaysia continued to lead the list, as did European nations like France and Italy. However, compared to the same period in 2019, there was a large increase in Chinese tourists’ Alipay spending in less popular locations like Estonia and Qatar, suggesting a change in travel tastes.
Alipay is an Alipay+ partner e-wallet. Alipay+ was developed by Ant Group as a collection of international mobile payment and marketing solutions. It now integrates with roughly 30 top e-wallets. The program now links tens of millions of merchants globally to more than 1.4 billion payment accounts in Asia and beyond thanks to its recent expansion onto the Chinese mainland. When utilizing their chosen payment methods while traveling abroad, customers benefit from easy payment and a wide selection of promotions.
Up to 200% more daily transactions were made by foreign tourists entering China between September 29 and October 6 using the 10 Alipay+ partner e-wallets (AlipayHK, mPay, Hipay, OCBC, Changi Pay, Touch ‘n Go eWallet, TrueMoney, Kakao Pay, Naver Pay, and Toss Pay).
Source- Travel daily