Businesses in overseas tourist hotspots are diversifying away from the once-lucrative Chinese market, saying it will take up to two more years for arrivals from China to get anywhere close to pre-pandemic levels.
ahead of the Lunar New Year period – which starts on Sunday – as analysts predict that limited airline capacity, visa-processing backlogs and a COVID-19 surge will keep Chinese travellers local.
“By next Chinese New Year, I hope to see the Chinese market returning to some sort of prevalence ... Suiting the needs of that market and others will another challenge that we work through over the following year.” Tourism and Transport Forum chief Margy Osmond predicted a small bump in Chinese tourists would begin in from late January, but not “at the same magnitude that we are used to”.
Chinese airlines are, however, expanding their schedules faster. Sydney Airport currently has three airlines operating passenger flights between Sydney and mainland China; China Southern, China Eastern and Xiamen Air.The airlines, which have been operating passenger flights one to two times a week over the last three years are adding more flights.
Around 162,700 short-term visitors from China, Taiwan and Hong Kong came to Australia in February 2019, the month that then marked the Lunar New Year “In recent months that number has dropped to just one, with Xiamen Airlines maintaining a weekly flight from Melbourne to Xiamen,” an airport spokeswoman said.
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