Europe is basking in summer, with sunny skies, high temperatures – and a surge in Chinese tourists.
“We’re pretty optimistic. I work at the centre of Brussels and we see a lot of Chinese. I hear Mandarin everywhere,” said Ludivine Destrée, senior marketing manager at the European Travel Commission (ETC).
Europe as a whole, including Switzerland, recorded a 13 per cent year-on-year increase in Chinese tourists during the first half of 2025, according to Destrée.
This momentum is only expected to continue. A recent report by the ETC found that 72 per cent of Chinese tourists expressed a willingness to travel long-haul to the continent. That was well above the global average of 39 per cent, and higher than the US and Japan – two traditionally strong markets – at 33 per cent and 13 per cent respectively.
