Visit California, in order to attract more Chinese travellers, has forged a partnership with Tuniu. As part of the partnership, they are working with Jay Chou, a leading singer, actor, director and producer. He will star in a series of co-branded spots showcasing the destination and attractions as well as travel services offered by Tuniu.

In the series, Chou travels all over California, assisting wayward travelers along the way and chronicling his journey. Many California destinations are featured, including Santa Monica, Santa Barbara, San Diego and Disney California Adventure Park.

“China is California’s No.1 overseas market, and this partnership with Tuniu creates yet another critical link between Chinese travelers and our state’s many vibrant destinations,” said Caroline Beteta, President and CEO of Visit California. “We are excited to launch this comprehensive campaign, combining travel trade packages, public relations and consumer marketing, all with the intent to inspire Chinese consumers to bring their dreams to life in California.”

The partnership, more than a year in the making, signifies major strides in creating demand for California as a destination among Chinese travelers. In addition to Visit California’s annual cross-channel consumer advertising campaigns, the co-branded Tuniu television campaign will run the entirety of 2017. Q1 will serve as a warm-up period focused on out-of-home advertising, popular evening shows, and TV and online TV Chinese New Year celebration programs. In Q2-Q3, Tuniu will be putting heavy marketing dollars targeting summer and “Golden Week,” the peak travel periods in the Chinese market.

To help travelers inspired by the commercials take action, Visit California is also working with Tuniu to develop four new statewide group travel itineraries and FIT packages in early 2017. A large component of the Chinese travel landscape, tour operators like Tuniu assist travelers in creating hassle-free itineraries with flights, hotels and other arrangements like attraction tickets and rental cars packaged together. In 2015 Chinese visitor spending in California was nearly $2.6 billion, with forecasts to grow to more than $4.8 billion by 2020. More than 70 percent of Chinese travel to California was booked through tour operators and retail agencies, with the top 20 travel agents – including Tuniu – handling more than 80 percent of outbound package tours.

Visit California’s investment in China has grown significantly since entering the market, from a half a million in 2008 to nearly $10 million in less than a decade. The organization has expanded activities over the years to include consumer marketing through television and digital advertising, supporting the more established activities with media and travel trade. Visit California now spends more in China than any market outside of the domestic United States, underscoring the importance of China as an overseas market. Visit California has in-market offices in all three Tier 1 China cities (Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangzhou), as well as Chengdu, and Taipei, Taiwan.

While California pushes to drive tourism in the state, it is expected that the recent announcements by US President Trump will impact travel to the country. Many experts believe that the current situations will turn travellers towards other destinations and that could reduce the impact of efforts Visit California is putting in the Chinese market.

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Triip, a Vietnam-based travel platform that enables tourists to enjoy the best private tours crafted by local guides, has recently raised USD 500,000 in seed funding in a round led by Gobi Partners.

As a result of this financial backing, in the near future, Triip aims to increase hiring, multiply the marketing efforts to increase its customer base and expand into newer markets.

Elaborating on the benefits of using Triip for unique travel experiences, according to the article, Ha Lam – Co-founder of the company – quoted:

“Our Triip Creators deliver their experiences from their heart, not for profit. They already have their own day jobs – so they are not commission-driven like many traditional tour guides. In this way, we believe that through Triip, travelers can have a more authentic and enjoyable travel experience as they meet real people to share passions and create friendships.”

This significant investment highlights Gobi Partner’s fourth investment in a travel tech startup. Prior to this, the company had financially supported Chinese travel company Tuniu, place of interest discover app Spottly and Indonesian travel platform Tripvisto.

How does Triip work?

The locals can sign up to become ‘Trip Creators’. This allows them to create their own custom tour packages and earn substantial money. For absolute transparency between locals and travellers, Triip screens all tour guides and travel experiences to ensure their authenticity and reliability. Consequently, travellers can book tour packages with utmost ease. Upon completion of the tour, payment is delivered to the guide while the company receives 10% of it. It has a two-way rating system to eliminate bad guides and travellers.

Currently, Triip is available in 86 countries (600 cities) with 5,000 travel experiences passionately curated by 9000+ locals.

How successfully will Triip increase its customer base and expand into newer markets in the months to come will be worth a watch!

Source: E27

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