Travelers tighten purse strings

Chinese outbound travelers tightened their purse strings last year as their spending on travel dropped by 17 percent amid a slowing economy and is expected to pick up next year with one-third planning to spend more, according to a survey.

According to Chinese International Travel Monitor 2016, daily outbound travel expenses dropped from 3,324 yuan ($500) last year to 2,849 yuan in 2016. The report surveyed 3,000 Chinese outbound travelers and 5,800 global hoteliers in May.

"It is even more significant among top spenders with their average daily expenses dropped by 40 percent from 13,800 yuan in 2015 to 8,228 yuan in 2016, said Jessica Chuang, director of regional marketing in China, Southeast Asia and India of hotels.com Asia Pacific.