China to Become World’s Top Tourism Destination by 2014
Travel Blog • Michael Yessis • 07.06.07 | 9:15 AM ET
So says the World Tourism Organization, according to an Agence France-Presse story. That’s six years earlier than the organization predicted earlier this year. At this point, I’m not most interested in when China will gain the top spot. I’m intrigued by the country’s amazing growth.
In 1978, 300,000 foreigners visited China, according to the China National Tourism Administration. In 2006, 22 million people came—not including those from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. “China has been enjoying double-digit expansion for years, with the number of tourist arrivals doubling in the past five years alone,” the AFP reports.
China is currently the third most touristed nation, behind the United States and the reigning No. 1, France.
Related on World Hum:
* Zagats on Chinese Cuisine: U.S. Needs ‘Dumpling Diplomacy’
* China on the Rise: Stories by Jeffrey Tayler and Peter Hessler
* Shangri-La: It’s Real, and It’s a Successful Marketing Ploy
* Chinese Government to its Traveling Citizens: No Spitting!
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Michael Yessis is the cofounder and coeditor of World Hum.
