In its first trade mission to China since the pandemic, VisitBritain is set to bring together 43 industry suppliers in Shanghai from November 22-24.

Destination Britain China and North East Asia, taking place from November 22-24 in Shanghai, will bring together 43 industry suppliers from across Britain with 69 top buyers from China, Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea to do business.

According to VisitBritain, the national tourism agency, this will be the agency’s first trade mission to China since 2019 and will be led by Chairman Nick de Bois. More than 2,000 one-to-one business appointments are set to take place during the three-day trade fair.

In a press statement, VisitBritain says that its research shows that airline routes and seat capacity from China are showing strong recovery, flight bookings are continuing to build back and the UK is high on the wish list of Chinese travellers. Its latest forecast shows that China is set to return to the UK’s second most valuable visitor market in the next two years. Flight bookings from China to the UK are currently tracking at about 50 pc of 2019 levels, showing significant improvements from January when bookings were just 6 pc.

The statement adds that during the event travel buyers can connect with British tourism suppliers to learn about the latest products and innovations on offer from across Britain’s tourism industry. The British suppliers include hotels, visitor attractions, destination management companies, retailers, tour and sightseeing operators, spanning the length and breadth of the nations and regions.

“It is fantastic to be leading VisitBritain’s trade mission to China, the first since 2019, a timely and valuable opportunity to boost the recovery from this incredibly important visitor market. This mission marks a major milestone for us to reconnect with the travel trade across China and North East Asia and for British travel suppliers and destinations to get their tourism products and services in front of top buyers and explore new business opportunities. With pent-up demand for travel and with Britain back on China’s Approved Destination Status list, this trade mission is also a valuable chance to promote our welcome and to hear first-hand from buyers on the motivations and trends driving outbound travel from the region,” says de Bois.

The statement adds that delegates and media can connect with international travel market trends alongside seminars from VisitScotland, UK Visas and Immigration, Kendal Mountain Film Festival and Virgin Atlantic Airways, to boost knowledge of Britain as a visitor destination and drive urgency to visit. 

VisitBritain adds it will also showcase its Great Britain ‘See Things Differently’ campaign promoting the fresh and exciting experiences on offer, inspiring visitors to explore more of Britain and to travel across the seasons.