Sunshine Matters

VISIT FLORIDA President and CEO Chris Thompson recently attended a two-day summit in Orlando where U.S. and Chinese tourism officials explored opportunities for growing travel between the two countries.  Tourism officials from 22 other states and 30 Chinese provinces were also in attendance, including the chairman of the China National Tourism Administration, Shao Qiwei and U.S. Travel Association President and CEO, Roger Dow.  The event provided the chance to participate in discussions on strategies for promoting and stimulating travel between China and the U.S., travel trends in the U.S.-China market, attendance at the Shanghai World Expo 2010 and shared travel challenges such as the H1N1 flu. 

As part of last year’s China International Travel Mart in Shanghai, VISIT FLORIDA signed an agreement with Guangdong Province to be sister states/provinces.  During the summit last month, Thompson had the opportunity to visit again with Yang Rong Sen, the Director General of the Tourism Administration of Guangdong Province, and to present him with a signed Alan Maltz print.  Guangdong, located on the southern coast of the People’s Republic of China, is the most populous province in China and one of its most prosperous.  With 79 million permanent residents and a gross domestic product of 3.57 trillion yaun (or $522 billion U.S.), Guangdong contributes approximately 12 percent of the national economic output. 

During the Orlando summit, leading tourism officials from both countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) as part of an ongoing initiative to build strategic cooperation in tourism.  The countries’ first summit, held in October 2007, led directly to the first official Chinese tour group visit to the United States the following June.  According to the U.S. Travel Association (USTA), China added the United States to its list of approved travel destinations in December 2007 and recently expanded international marketing for Chinese group leisure travel from six provinces to 21.

“These summits help to nurture the developing tourism trade between our two countries,” said Roger Dow. “We know that tourism not only stimulates the economy, but also encourages cultural understanding and widens global perspectives. We are glad to encourage this relationship and continue to welcome more Chinese travelers to the United States.”

China’s middle class currently is more than 300 million people strong and represents the fastest growing outbound travel market in the world.  Last year, nearly 500,000 citizens of Mainland China visited the United States, according to USTA, which said visitors from China come frequently, stay an average of 23 nights and spend an average of $7,200 per person, per trip – more than any other inbound international group in the United States.