Figures from Statistics Norway (SSB – Statistisk sentralbyrå) show that there has been a clear jump of Chinese trourists coming to Norway in 2017 compared to the last three years.
Worldwide the Chinese tourism boom started almost 10 years ago, and new statistics on hotel stays show a 90 percent increase in Chinese nationals to Norway so far this year with 31,803 overnight stays.
One of the reasons for Chinese to go to Norway is according to GoDigitalChina that the average income in China has risen by 30 percent. Assuming that only 4 percent of the population in China has an income of at least $15 000 annually, the number of people who can afford travelling to Europe has increased by 600 percent.
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Photo: Lise Åserud / NTB scanpix
Another reason is improved relations between Norway and China. The tourist industry noted a downturn in relations between Norway and China after Liu Xiaobo received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2010. In December last year, the government announced that relations between the two countries had been normalized after six years without any political engagement.
A third reason is the beautiful nature in Norway and the fact that Norway is considered a peaceful country.
“The Asian market is growing the most,” Bente Bratland Holm, travel director for Innovation Norge, told newspaper Aftenposten earlier this year. “Norway now has the most overnight stays by Chinese tourists in Scandinavia.”
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Purchases of airline ticket and hotel reservations have led travel and tourism organizations to expect yet another record year, with business up 28 percent over last year.
‘China can become one of our largest foreign markets,’ said Bergen Reiselivslag Director, and President of NHO Reiseliv, Ole Warberg.
Feature image (on top): Members of Chinese rock-band Escape Plan on a tour to Norway
Chinese Tourists Are Looking to Norway, written by Tor Kjolberg