The lifting of China’s travel restrictions can already be seen in the increase in internet searches and e-mail messages from hotels and tourism marketing companies. The subject of interest is especially the 2024 season.
The willingness to travel that has been pent up in China during the Corona years will soon be unleashed with real action, when China has decided to remove travel restrictions. Travel will be freed already after the epiphany on Monday, but the influx of Chinese tourists in Lapland will have to wait until the next winter season.
The number of Chinese tourists grew rapidly in the couple of years before the corona virus. When the corona lockdowns started, tourism practically came to a complete stop, for Chinese tourists for no less than three years. However, there can be signs of a return to the previous pace.
– Probably, the activation of these things after a long corona lockdown will take its own time. But it has been seen that the Chinese population is very quickly activated to travel. Yes, there is a strong feeling that in the twenty-fourth season we will return to the pre-corona situation quite quickly, says Sanna Kärkkäinen.
There are so many tourists in Lapland now that this season is already full. But now we are already thinking about the next season and how there will be enough capacity for the Chinese as well. Travel agencies and tour operators buy accommodation quotas and tourism services in advance, otherwise trips cannot be sold to customers.
– This season has been extremely successful. And also the previous season’s quotas, which may have been reserved for Chinese customers or sold in advance, of course they were freed up and have gone to other markets, so to speak.
– How quickly do we get to the winter market, what is still there for sale, that’s a good question, Sanna Kärkkäinen, CEO of Visit Rovaniemi, says.
Kemi’s tourism is investing in other parts of Asia
Chinese tourists were an important tourist group for Kemi’s tourism before the corona pandemic. After the country closed down due to the strict corona policy, the customer base has been expanded more and more to other parts of Asia, and everything is no longer dependent on one card.
– Asian trade has already had time to build up elsewhere than the Chinese. Tourists come from, for example, Thailand, Singapore and the Malaysian peninsula.
The corona tests that may be required of the Chinese would thus not hinder the current season of tourism in Kemi. According to Löppönen, the only concern is that the problems would spread from China to other Asian countries and there would be restrictions on tourism.
*You can discuss the topic in 6.1. until 11 pm*