Brazilian and Chinese tourists to increase hotel spending budgets, finds survey

03-Jul-2012 - Last updated on 26-Apr-2021 at 15:14 GMT

Over half (58 per cent) of Chinese travellers and 41 per cent of Brazilians admitted to an increased holiday budget this year

The UK hotel industry should be prepared to welcome a greater number of Chinese and Brazilian tourists later this year, as increasing numbers plan to spend more on holidays than in 2011, according to a recent survey.

The survey, by Wyndham Hotel Group, found that over half (58 per cent) of Chinese travellers and 41 per cent of Brazilians admitted to an increased holiday budget this year.

The results also show that the citizens of China and Brazil spend this extra cash differently; the Chinese spend on luxury accommodation while Brazilians tend to spend on other activities and value good customer service more than any other nation surveyed.

The survey also found:

Of these Chinese travellers, over half (61 per cent) would allocate extra spend to a hotel upgrade, while over two thirds (72 per cent) will stay in upscale (four-star) or midscale (three-star) hotels. By comparison, just over a third (35 percent) of Brazilian holidaymakers will opt for a budget (one to two star) hotel stay.
Half (50 per cent) of Chinese travellers are part of a hotel loyalty program, with an impressive 76 per cent staying faithful to this program when booking a hotel stay. The U.S. followed suit with nearly two thirds (64 per cent) reliant on loyalty initiatives when planning a trip.
Regardless of nationality, the majority of travellers (53 per cent) agree on the allocation of extra budget to extend a holiday, while just under half (47 per cent) would upgrade to a better hotel. By contrast, just one in four (25 per cent) would be happy to pay extra for hotel facilities, such as spa services.

The news comes shortly after hoteliers in the UK have been advised to market themselves towards guests from three emerging markets– Singapore, South Korea and Brazil – in a bid to increase room bookings.

New data from online travel company Expedia revealed that bookings through more than 100 Expedia and Hotels.com branded sites from Brazil to the UK grew 160 per cent in 2011 compared to the previous year.

VISA applications

Meanwhile, complications and difficulties obtaining a tourist visa were recently highlighted as a ‘major deterrent’ for potential visitors to the UK, reducing the impact of tourism as an engine for growth in the UK economy.

However, in China, waiting times for a VISA application have been reduced from 90 days to seven days in just four months.

BHA chief executive Ufi Ibrahim said: “Britain cannot afford to continue to deter visitors by complicated tourist visa processing procedures, which are also costly. A Schengen visa is required in addition to a British visa if visitors want to visit other EU countries.

“According to the Tourism Alliance, Britain has a 0.25 per cent share of the Chinese market. Increasing that to 2.5 per cent could add more than £2bn to the UK economy and create over 40,000 jobs.”

The Wyndham Hotel study surveyed just over 5,600 adults in key cities throughout the U.K, U.S, Canada, China and Brazil.