Aging but agile, Chinese retirees hitting the road
These days, post-retirement life for Chinese people goes beyond tai chi, mahjong, and dancing. It includes travel, which has spawned a niche tourism industry.
Liu Yue, 56, says she now travels twice a year. She has visited the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, the Tibet autonomous region, Guizhou province and Yunnan province, as well as Russia and Cambodia in recent years. Her future plans are for visits to Japan and South Korea.
She invites several friends or family members to join package tours - "so we don't need to use our time to make the travel schedule".
Chinese tourists buy souvenirs in Vladivostok, Russia. Many senior citizens see travel as the realization of their long-held dreams from youth. Yuri Smityuk / TASS
Most of the time, Liu visits major scenic destinations and buys specialty items. Each tour may cost between 6,000 yuan ($872; 764 euros; ￡686) and 10,000 yuan. "The point is to relax, experience local culture and enjoy tasty food," she says.
The world's second-largest economy has 240 million senior citizens, and more than 20 percent of Chinese tourists come from that group, which has stimulated the tourism market during the low season, according to the Office of the National Working Commission on Aging.
Chinese people who are now age 55 or over were born in difficult times when a typical family income would cover only the costs of basic living. Consequently, many older people see travel as the realization of long-held dreams from their youth, says Chen Guang, a partner at the consultancy firm McKinsey and Company.
After retirement, they have stable income from pensions, less economic pressure and more free time. So travel is feasible. Their grown children give them tours as gifts to express love and gratitude, Chen says.
"With the economic development, the elderly tourism market is growing faster than many other mature tourism markets," he said.
The stereotype of old Chinese tourists crowding into Chinese restaurants or taking photographs is also changing. Older people are seeking more diversity and deeper cultural experiences.
According to a recent report released by Ctrip, China's largest online travel agency, about 85 percent of its more than 1 million elderly clients choose medium and high-end packages that emphasize comfort and pleasurable travel. Therefore, tailored trips, themed tours, private tours and cruises are gaining in popularity among older travelers.
Tourists older than 55 ordered about 16 percent of the tailored trips this year. Keywords most frequently mentioned in tailored trips include "five-star airlines", "comfortable" and "special food", the report said.
Chen said part of the reason is that newly retired people have more disposable income and more experience in adapting to the outside world. He says the trend is also largely influenced by the preferences of their children or grandchildren, since family trips are common.
"Marketing and travel packages should be designed to target the adult children, since they are more likely to be the decision-makers," he says.
According to the report, the average money spent by those older than 50 reached 3,115 yuan for each overseas package tour, the highest of all age-groups.
Popular products at Ctrip include elements such as small groups, pickup services and sufficient free time, the company says.
David Gosset, founder of the Europe-China Forum, said: "For older people, culture is more attractive than entertainment. And what young people would consider fun could be simply noise for them.
"A destination like Hainan, whose climate is agreeable could play a major part in tourism choices. The scope of health tourism would grow if resorts or companies would target older people. Adapting the concept of wellness for older people could also have enormous potential," Gosset says.
Editor: Wang Huan