CHINA: Chinese Tourists Shun Europe After Attacks

About half of Chinese tourists who intended to travel to Europe this summer have canceled or changed their trips due to recent terrorist attacks and other security risks there, according to China Business News.

A terrorist attack in Ansbach of Germany is the latest of a number of attacks that have rattled Europe in recent months. Chinese tourists to France and Germany, two of their most popular destinations, dropped by almost two-thirds, estimated the newspaper.

The exchange rate volatility caused by Brexit was expected to boost tourism in Europe this summer, but due to the terrorist attacks in major European countries and the recent attempted coup in Turkey, the industry will be significantly impacted, said a tour guide who specializes in Europe-bound travel.

Another tour agent who focuses on tourism in France told the newspaper that two tourist groups canceled their trip just one day after the attack in Nice on July 14.

The number of Chinese tourists to France has maintained double-digit growth in the past decade, reaching 2 million last year and making China the largest overseas tourist group in the country. But tourists who take regular flights to the country have dropped 5.8 percent since January this year, and the number of tourists heading for Paris has decreased by 11 percent.

Apart from west European countries which have long been popular with Chinese tourists, Turkey also rose to fame among Chinese tourists in recent years thanks to a loosened visa policy and some popular reality shows featuring the country. The Chinese tourists to Turkey numbered 150,000 in the first half of 2015, nearly the same amount for all of 2014.

But with the country suffering from five terrorist attacks since this year, tourism in the country has been severely undermined overseas tourists in May plummeted by 34.7 percent from last year, the most significant drop in 22 years.

Hotels in Europe are among the most affected, with revenues dropping, a rarity during peak season, the tour agent told the paper. The income of local tourist guides also bears the brunt, as most of them rely on commissions and tips from tourist groups.