From the Great Wall to the Northern Light : An analysis of Mainland Chinese toursim in the Nordic Countries

Abstract

Tourism is gradually playing an increasingly important role the global urban economic development. Recent figures show that China may become world’s largest outbound tour-ism market and last year, the total number of Chinese outbound visitors grew by 22%, among which the number of non-official tours abroad accounts for 91%. With this poten-tial, the possibility of Chinese tourists visiting the Nordic could be huge, unfortunately very few Chinese know about the Nordic. This thesis researches both the potentials and resources the Nordic can offer Chinese tourists as well as the existing barriers stopping the development Chinese tourism in the Nordic countries. Further, potential target groups among Chinese tourists are identified through the usage of questionnaires and interviews. The result shows that the main resources the Nordic can offer are the nature resources. The current target group is made up of urban residents with higher income and good edu-cational level. The main barriers that slow down the development of Chinese tourism in the Nordic are the price level of the Nordic, the lack of knowledge about the Nordic countries, the Nordic climate and the Visa application process.