In the first-ever assessment of China’s
Meeting, Incentive, Convention, & Exhibition (MICE) market, the GBTA
Foundation found a total of 138.5 million domestic trips were taken for MICE
purposes and MICE business travelers spent a total of $110 billion USD (¥680
billion CNY) during those trips in 2014. Nearly one-third (29 percent) of
Chinese business travelers expect the number of MICE meetings they will attend
to increase over the next year.
Business travel for MICE activity comprises
42 percent of total domestic business travel volume in China and 45 percent of
total business travel spending. Shanghai (27 percent) and Beijing (25 percent)
hosted the majority of MICE trips in China over the last 12 months, followed by
Guangzhou (24 percent), Hong Kong (11 percent) and Macau (6 percent).
These findings come from a new study,
Market Assessment of MICE Business Travel in China, conducted by the GBTA
Foundation, the education and research arm of the Global Business Travel
Association, and sponsored by Starwood Hotels and Resorts.
“This first-ever assessment of China’s MICE market shows just how
large this segment is in China making up 42 percent of total domestic business
travel and producing spend of $110 billion USD – second only to the United
States,” said Joseph Bates, GBTA Foundation Vice President of Research. “The
MICE segment presents a large opportunity for travel suppliers and we expect it
to continue to grow at a rapid pace as China’s economy expands.”
“We are excited to partner with GBTA Foundation for this unique study
focused on China’s Meetings & Events industry,” said Nichlas Maratos, Vice
President, Sales- Asia Pacific, Starwood Hotels & Resorts. “As we continue
our aggressive growth strategy across China, the findings not only help us
better understand the nature and the size of the MICE industry, it will also
help shape the future of our business. It’s also reassuring to see that the
study affirms our efforts and growth plans in China, where we currently have
over 150 hotels in operation and more than 150 hotels in the pipeline.”
In the past 12 months, 86 percent of
business travelers have taken a trip for MICE purposes in China and each
business traveler spends an average of $1,100 USD (¥6,782 CNY) per trip.
Chinese MICE trips last 2.9 days on average with the majority of trips (59
percent) lasting between two and four days. Most business travelers (64
percent) reach their MICE destinations by air while 18 percent travel by train
and 14 percent by car. MICE meetings are typically held at conferences and
convention centers (38 percent) or hotels (33 percent).