Cozystay, an online vacation rental platform serving Chinese vacationers worldwide, is announcing its recent success serving the increasing number of global Chinese tourists.
In 2000, 10.5 million overseas trips were made by Chinese residents. By 2017, this number had grown to 145 million, a 1380% increase. Currently, only 7% of Chinese citizens possess a passport, providing a clear path for further growth. It is predicted that overseas trips by Chinese tourists could increase to more than 400 million by 2030.
Chinese travelers tend to have different expectations than western travelers, including a desire for an increased level of service. When considering overseas travel destinations and tourist attractions, “cost” is far less important than the “experience.”
Cozystay has designed its offering to suit this demographic and 2018 has seen Cozystay’s total number of transactions close to double, and total average length of stay nearly triple.
“Our partners in China really value our level of customer service because we understand how these guests and hosts prefer to communicate. Communication with guests from China is always on WeChat,” said Don Kim, VP of Business Development for Cozystay. “ We had one customer who had lost their luggage, and they spoke no English. Our customer service center contacted the airlines on behalf of the customer and had the luggage delivered directly to the host’s condo.”
Sandra Hao, CEO of Beijing Meichen International Travel Service, a major online travel agency in China, said: “We have consistent confidence in Cozystay’s ability to deliver top-tier service for our clients, whether in English or Chinese; and because of their office located in North America, it is easy to overcome any timezone challenges for travelers requiring support abroad.”
Another major driver of Cozystay’s growth has been via its expanding inventory and growing interest from online travel agent partners in China.
Tujia Sweetome recently invested in Cozystay’s property rental group. Tujia is China’s biggest short-term property rental firm in China and thought of by many as China’s AirBnB.
“Cozystay is an ideal partner for us because they understand the unique tastes of Chinese customers. A great example of this is the fact that Cozystay accepts WeChat Pay and Alipay as all major credit cards,” said Justin Luo, Co-Founder and CEO of Tujia. “Also, their customer service team is always available to answer questions about everything from whether tipping is customary or where an ironing board is located. They have been very smart about using technology to make delivering white glove service possible in an efficient way.”
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