The frequency of "planned outbound trips" of Chinese mainland tourists exceeds those of Hong Kong and Taiwanese tourists, and the Asia Pacific region is the preferred destination of Chinese mainland tourists, according to the "Asia Pacific Travel Intention Survey" released on July 7, jointly conducted by Visa and the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA).

The survey was launched in May 2010 and the number of the respondents in the Greater China Area reached 1,571. According to the survey, the number of outbound business or leisure trips of Chinese mainland tourists will average 7.4 over the next two years, compared with 5.6 and 4.5 for Hong Kong and Taiwanese tourists, respectively.

The survey shows that the Asia Pacific will remain the favorite destination of the Greater China Area tourists over the next two years, followed by Western Europe and North America. Hong Kong, however, remains the preferred destination of Chinese mainland and Taiwanese tourists, but places in the Asia Pacific, Australia and Japan are expected to supplant Hong Kong to become the favorite destinations of Chinese mainland tourists in the near future. Thailand is no longer very attractive to Hong Kong tourists while Maldives has been included into the top-10 destinations for Hong Kong tourists for the first time.

John Koldowski, deputy CEO of PATA, said, "This survey demonstrates that Asian Pacific countries and markets will become the preferred destinations of Chinese mainland tourists over the next two years. Chinese tourists became the world's fourth biggest spenders in the tourism industry last year, creating pressure to formulate a strategy to meet the increasing demand from Chinese mainland tourists."