Chinese tourists in US from shopaholics to culture lovers

There used to be a time when the luxury stores on the Fifth Avenue of New York City (NYC) were frequented by Chinese consumers. But now, they have turned to the attractions other than gilt and luxury.[Photo/IC]

As larger numbers of Chinese tourists are coming to the United States with more individualized travel plans, more are turning their eyes to cultural and art attractions, rather than a shopping spree.

"We have seen the rise of independent Chinese tourists for a while, and they have showed increasing interest in culture and arts," Lin Xiaowen, a tour guide with the Metropolitan Museum of Art (the Met) in New York, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

There used to be a time when the luxury stores on the Fifth Avenue of New York City (NYC) were frequented by Chinese consumers. But now, they have turned to the attractions other than gilt and luxury.

"In recent years, the number of Chinese tourists (to the Met) is keeping rising. In 2009, it was only about 50,000 (annually), but since 2014, the number has already over 200,000," said Lin, "So, Chinese visitors have become the largest group of foreign visitors in Met since then."

In fiscal year of 2015, the number of visitors to this iconic museum in the United States has reached 6.3 million, which has been attributed in a large part to Chinese elements and tourists. The Met is one of the world's largest museums with over two million pieces of artwork.

Responding to the sharp rise of Chinese visitors, the museum made efforts to cater to the Chinese, including audio tours and maps in Mandarin, opening a Chinese Weibo account, and even acceptance of UnionPay.

"Now, the museum sets three times a week mandarin highlight tour to visitors," Lin added.

It has been reported that the Mandarin version of the Met's guidebook sells better than any other foreign-language editions.