Safety tops concerns for Chinese travelers in 2026 report

China's outbound travel demand continues to rebound, with more travelers opting for self-planned itineraries over packaged tours. As travelers gain greater control over their travel schedules, they're placing more specific demands for destination safety updates, reliable accommodation safeguards and emergency support services, according to a new industry report.

Airbnb China, the World Tourism Cities Federation, the Tourism Research Center of Capital University of Economics and Business, and Mastercard recently jointly released the 2026 Global Travel Safety Insights Report, at the World Conference on Tourism Cooperation and Development 2026.

The report centered on topics including destination safety, accommodation safety, cross-border payment security, and traveler behaviors.

It showed that 66.53 percent of surveyed tourists chose independent travel. Also, 93.47 percent of respondents regarded safety as "very important" or "fairly important" when making outbound travel decisions. A total of 81.63 percent of respondents placed safety as their top consideration — well above factors such as natural scenery, tourism resources and budget.

Safety incidents can directly alter traveler behaviors. When sudden security risks emerge at a destination after travel bookings are confirmed, 80 percent of respondents would cancel or change their trips. Of those respondents, 60.41 percent said they would revise their plans immediately even if they had to incur partial financial losses.

Safety incidents also leave long-lasting marks on destination reputations. A total of 60 percent of respondents said their destination-selection decisions would be affected for more than three months, and 22.45 percent noted such impacts could persist for over a year.

When choosing travel offerings, personal safety, property safety, accommodation safety and payment safety emerged as the four top concerns among respondents. News media reports and official safety advisories issued by China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and overseas diplomatic missions are the two primary channels for them to obtain overseas safety information.

A total of 66.51 percent of subjects said they paid close attention to accommodation safety. For overseas homestays, the top three factors shaping trust were platform brand reputation, authentic guest reviews and transparent property information.

Cai Hong, director of the Tourism Research Center, Capital University of Economics and Business, said: "Against a backdrop of intertwined geopolitical tensions, extreme weather conditions and public security risks, safety incidents can cast long-term impacts on destination images and travelers' decision-making."

She said that improving overall travel safety requires joint efforts from governments, industry enterprises and tourists. "This four-party collaboration integrates academic research, industrial practices and cross-border payment security expertise, aiming to deliver tangible references for optimizing safety alerts, standardizing product criteria and enhancing travelers' awareness."

The report suggested that relevant authorities and overseas missions should refine scenario-specific safety reminders and overseas emergency coordination mechanisms. Travel and accommodation platforms should standardize how safety information is displayed, strengthen product reviews, and sustain 24/7 emergency response support. Cross-border payment providers should upgrade risk monitoring and consumer education.

Meanwhile, travelers are encouraged to proactively check official safety advisories, purchase travel insurance, keep emergency contacts accessible, and raise awareness of overseas payment risk prevention.