China Tourism Rises amid Economic Slowdown.docVIP

China Tourism Rises amid Economic Slowdown 　　2015 has become a past tense. Over the course of the year， a lot happened in China’s travel industry. “New normal” became the main theme for China’s economic development last year. However， the economic slowdown seems to have no influence on tourists’ plan to travel overseas， as the number of outbound tourists still surged during holidays. 　　From new rules regulating tourists’behaviors to the removal of Shanhaiguan’s 5A rating， there was an everprogressing trend towards more civilized and standardized tourism. From Britain’s new visa policy to Chinese tourists， to a bouncing back of inbound travelers， there was a boom in China’s tourism exchanges with the outside world. Over the year， there were many milestones that helped shaped the travel industry 　　 New Driver for Tourism 　　China is the world’s largest outbound market since 2012， according to Madrid-based United Nations World Tourism Organization （UNWTO）. In 2013， Chinese tourists spent 129 billion U.S. dollars abroad， more than any other source market in the world， UNWTO said. 　　In 2014， the number of Chinese tourists traveling abroad increased by 19.5% year on year to 109 million， nearly 13 times the level in 1998， topping a threshold of 100 million for the first time in history， according to NTA data. 　　“Even one individual tourist’s poor behavior will have global impacts，” said Yu Ningning， president of the China International Travel Services Co.， Ltd.，“The tourist industry and travellers should protect the global image of Chinese people in accordance with law.” 　　According to a recent survey conducted by COTRI， more and more tourists from second- and third-tier tourists show great enthusiasm to travel overseas， becoming the new driver for the outbound tourism. 　　The “COTRI Market Report” identifies four cities as first-tier cities， namely， Beijing， Shanghai， Shenzhen， and Guangzhou， and 12 Chinese cities as second-tier， namely， Chengdu， Chongqing， Wuha