Airbnb: Chinese New Year 2025 Outbound Travel Trends Report

Chinese travelers will be chasing the Northern Lights in Norway during Chinese New Year 2025, predicts Airbnb. Photo by Bjørn Are With Andreassen on Unsplash

Airbnb China released a report on 10 December 2024, looking ahead to outbound travel trends for the upcoming 2025 Chinese New Year holiday (28 January-4 February), based on searches and bookings on its platform.

So far, searches for Airbnb stays during the Chinese New Year period are already three times higher than for the 1 January New Year period — which is only a one-day holiday in China.

The top 10 outbound destinations are: Japan, Thailand, New Zealand, Norway, Australia, South Korea, Malaysia, USA, Italy, and Indonesia. 70% of searches are for Asian destinations, but Airbnb searches reveal the diversity of the Chinese outbound travel market, from the dramatic natural landscapes of New Zealand and Norway, to lazy beach holidays in Malaysia and Indonesia.

Chinese tourists want to spend the Lunar New Year together, says the report, with more than half of bookings for multi-person groups. Gen-Z is the fastest growing demographic, and Chinese hosts are enjoying a market advantage in Southeast Asia.

Here are the four top Chinese New Year 2025 travel trends, as identified by Airbnb China:

Trend 1: Skiing in Japan
Japan is the most popular outbound destination year round, and winter is no exception. Last winter, China was already Japan’s third largest international source market for Airbnb stays, with two-thirds of bookings for groups of three or more. This year, there have been even more searches for snowy skiing destinations in Hokkaido and Nagano.

Trend 2: Relaxing in Southeast Asia
Southeast Asian destinations offer a strong Lunar New Year mood as well as warm beaches for relaxation. Close to half of all Chinese Airbnb searches for the holiday period are for Southeast Asia, including Indonesia’s Bali, Thailand’s Phuket, Malaysia, and Vietnam. Chinese travelers are especially looking for low-key, off-the-beaten-track destinations. Meanwhile, Chinese and Chinese-speaking landlords (“中文房东” in the report) have an advantage here, operating around 1/3 of properties.

Trend 3: Summer (and Sports) in the Southern Hemisphere
Chinese outbound travelers are clearly seeking summer, with New Zealand and Australia ranked 3rd and 5th on the list of top outbound destinations, respectively. New Zealand appeals for adventure sports like sky driving, as well as water sports. Meanwhile, searches for Australia are up by 7 times during the Australian Open dates in January, with searches for host city Melbourne increasing by 9 times.

Trend 4: Chasing the Northern Lights in the Arctic
2025 is expected to be a peak year for the Northern Lights, and Chinese travelers are seeking out Arctic destinations, with searches for Norway doubling since last year, propelling it into the top 5 search destinations for Chinese New Year. Tromso, known are the “Gateway to the Arctic” is one of the top three cities by searches, according to the report, and searches for the Lofoten Islands are up by 11 times. Meanwhile, Finland is also popular — searches for Rovaniemi, the official hometown of Santa Claus, are up 4 times.

This article is based on content posted by Dragon Trail’s sister brand, Chinese travel trade media TMW (Travel Marketing Watch). Click here to read the original (in Chinese).