101 East

How to be a Chinese Tourist

We go on tour in Paris with the Chinese tour groups who have joined the notorious club of the world’s worst tourists

From setting fire to curtains inside an aeroplane cabin and hurling scalding noodles over a flight attendant to urinating in public places, Chinese tourists have gained a bad reputation.

One in 10 travellers worldwide is from China. Outside Asia, their destination of choice is France, where their museum visits and shopping for luxury labels account for a sizeable chunk of tourism profits.

Despite complaints from locals, officials in Paris want to double the number of Chinese visitors to five million a year.

101 East asks what it will take to turn the plane loads of first-time travellers from China into well-behaved sightseers.

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