Europe's allure

More Chinese tourists are making a beeline for continent in search of customized, meaningful leisure experiences

The number of Chinese who booked trips to Europe in the first quarter of this year grew by 35 percent year-on-year, making Europe the most popular destination outside Asia for Chinese travelers, according to the China Tourism Academy.

The demand among Chinese for individual, customized adventures is likewise increasing.

More than 600 flights operate between China and Europe every week, taking millions of Chinese tourists to the continent each year. Passenger travel to Europe on high-speed trains, envisioned for the near future, would make coming and going even easier.

Online travel agency Ctrip.com says the demand for customized trips to Europe has increased by 130 percent year-on-year, and the average cost per person is 2,500 yuan ($375; 320 euros; ￡285) per day - much higher than the overall market growth rate and spending standards.

The top 10 travel themes of customized travel to European countries, according to Ctrip, are small weddings, watching ballgames, tasting local cuisine, study tours, honeymoon trips, architectural visits, wedding-picture trips, golf tours, experiencing town life and trips to hot springs.

Though France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and Spain are still the first choices for Chinese visiting Europe, countries such as Belgium, Switzerland, Portugal, Greece, Turkey, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Austria and the Czech Republic are seeing an increasing number of Chinese visitors, says Dai Bin, president of the China Tourism Academy.

A large number of small and medium-sized cities, rural towns and even villages in Europe are seeing Chinese leisure travelers, Dai says.

In fact, China is the world's No 1 tourism market, both in terms of trips abroad and travel spending.

Backed by implementation of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, as well as the introduction of a number of favorable policies, China's travel industry has enormous potential, since Chinese are willing to spend more on travel, according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization.

Data from the International Association of Tour Managers shows that overseas travel spending by Chinese tourists reached $261 billion (223 billion euros; ￡197 billion) in 2016, an increase of 4.5 percent year-on-year, making China first in the world.

Moreover, the China Outbound Tourism Research Institute predicts that overseas trips by Chinese will increase from last year's 145 million to more than 400 million by 2030.

One such traveler is Guo Jing, who just finished the entrance examination for university and, for summer vacation, is going to Serbia this month for 11 days. In the past six years, the 18-year-old has traveled to the UK, Italy, Switzerland, Spain and the Netherlands.