Chinese tourists’ changing behavior in package tours: The suppliers’ account

Abstract

This study adopted an interpretive approach in understanding the development of the package tour industry in China and the Chinese tourists’ behavioral changes in consuming package tours, via two data sources—in-depth interviews with senior tour guides and tour operators, and content analysis of OP task sheets collected over a span of 30 years’ time. The findings revealed that substantive changes had taken place in all aspects including group structure, destination selection, itinerary, core tourist activities, supporting arrangement, personnel, and peripheral items of the package tours. The result has also shed light on the future trends and the challenges ahead, especially in the post-COVID era. Implications to tour operators and tourism marketers are discussed.