Russian tourists are likely to be far a more lucrative market for the European tourism industry than the emerging China market, according to research by Mintel. The European Inbound Market Outlook, presented at the ETOA conference, reveals that only about 11% of Chinese outbound tourists travel outside of Asia. In addition, the research found that Chinese travellers spend little on food, lodging and cultural sites, and instead save as much as possible of the budget for shopping. Mintel research author Macy Marvel said that expectations over the Chinese market were 'overblown' and revealed that 34% of total spend goes on shopping and 18% on lodging and food. According to Marvel, Russia is a much safer investment because of the strength of the rouble and other favourable economic factors. He said: "Russians are prepared to pay for luxury. They like package tours and the market is immature. They book packages via traditional means." He warned, however, that the lengthy visa process could prevent volumes of Russians from travelling because they like to book relatively late. The research also showed that the most popular European destinations for Russians are Turkey with 45% of total share, followed by Egypt, 24%, and Spain with 6%. Marvel said: "Now is the time to get the documentation issue resolved because at the moment they are choosing easy-entry destinations." He added that package tours from Russia are predicted to increase by a third between 2005 and 2007 and that outbound spend on travel and tourism will double in the next 10 years. By Linda Fox

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