Pioneers include stores at Frankfurt Airport, which enabled contactless payments with Alipay as early as 2015. In 2017, the drugstore chain Rossmann, which is very popular among Chinese tourists, became the first major German retail chain to introduce mobile payments with Alipay.

"Numerous destinations, such as Stuttgart, are also developing tailored products and offers, particularly in the shopping sector, to better meet the needs of Chinese customers," she says.

Since the beginning of this year, outbound tourism from China has been recovering rapidly, with an increasing number of destinations and a wide variety of travel experiences.

According to the China Tourism Academy's annual report on outbound tourism development from 2023-24, the number of outbound traveler visits in 2023 exceeded 87 million and the report predicts that figure will reach 130 million this year.

Yang Jinsong, director of the international research institute at the China Tourism Academy, says that outbound Chinese tourism is a crucial driving force and stabilizer for global tourism development.

The recovery and growth of China's outbound tourism will inject strong confidence and momentum into global development, Yang adds.

The German tourist board says that it has picked up on the growing trend toward independent and customized travel among Chinese tourists.

According to a study it conducted on outbound travelers from metropolitan regions, 48 percent of respondents emphasized sustainable travel and 77 percent said they would incorporate a focus on nature during a city trip.

"For travelers seeking sustainability, Germany is a great place due to several key factors including environmental commitment, an extensive and efficient public transportation system, a wide range of eco-friendly accommodations and green cities," Hedorfer says, adding that more efforts will be made to cater to the preferences of Chinese travelers.