The online China Tourism Training (CTT) Edition 2022, an update of the programme launched in 2019, has incorporated many changes to reflect Chinese traveller demand and behaviour that developed over the last two years.
According to Wolfgang Georg Arlt, CEO, China Outbound Tourism Research Institute (COTRI), which developed CTT, interest has shifted to nature, smaller destinations, family travel, health, camping and caravan trips.
He added: “There is less interest in packaged tours, shopping and sightseeing, and more interest in half-organised customised or individual trips, more experiences and closer contact with local culture.”
COTRI is expecting some 500 CTT sign-ups in 2H2022 and “a boom for 2023 with several thousand participants when the Chinese borders open and a big wave of Chinese travellers with new needs and demands” are expected.
“Surprisingly, most participants are from Asia, followed by Europe and growing demand from South America,” Arlt noted.
“Successful participants are entitled to lifelong free membership in the CTT Alumni Network, which will start in the second half of 2022, and offer regular online webinars and online and offline meetings to develop into the main meeting point for those working in Chinese outbound tourism.”
COTRI, he commented, had seen growing CTT interest in recent weeks even though the current Covid-19 situation in China is still uncertain and there is no clear signal for when China will open.
CTT Edition 2022 comprises basic and advanced industry-specific training and is available in English, German and Spanish. Round-the-clock online access on any device is valid for three months.
Best practice examples, the cornerstone of the CTT programme, is drawn from a wide range of high-level leading global tourism service providers and Chinese industry experts.
Arlt said COTRI was “planning to offer a more academic and less practice-orientated version for 2023” for institutes of higher learning.
