Brazilian and Chinese Travellers to Increase Spending in 2012

LONDON, July 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

Wyndham Hotel Group survey reveals holiday trends for travellers around the globe

The U.K. travel industry should prepare to woo Chinese and Brazilian travellers in 2012, as significant numbers (58 percent of Chinese travellers, 41 percent of Brazilian travellers) plan to spend more on holidays than in 2011-this according to findings released today by Wyndham Hotel Group, the world's largest hotel company with over 7,150 hotels.

Commissioned to better understand the holiday spending habits of Wyndham Hotel Group's global guests, the study surveyed just over 5,600 adults in key cities throughout the U.K., U.S., Canada, China and Brazil.

The results also show that the citizens of China and Brazil spend this extra cash differently. The Chinese spend on luxury accommodation whilst Brazilians tend to spend on other activities and value good customer service more than any other nation surveyed.

Trends amongst Chinese and Brazilian Travellers:

• Over half (58 percent) of Chinese travellers admit to an increased holiday budget this year, with more than two fifths (41 percent) of Brazilian travellers agreeing, compared to just 27 percent in U.S. and 24 percent in U.K. and Canada.

• Of these Chinese travellers, over half (61 percent) would allocate extra spend to a hotel upgrade, while over two thirds (72 percent) will stay in upscale (4 star) or midscale (3 star) hotels. By comparison, just over a third (35 percent) of Brazilian holidaymakers will opt for a budget (1-2 star) hotel stay.

• Half (50 percent) of Chinese travellers are part of a hotel loyalty program, with an impressive 76 percent staying faithful to this program when booking a hotel stay. The U.S. followed suit with nearly two thirds (64 percent) reliant on loyalty initiatives, when planning a trip.

• Chinese travellers lead the pack when it comes to booking well-known hotel brands, with close to a quarter (24 percent) set to pay more for this, compared to an average of just 14 percent across U.S., U.K., Canada and Brazil.

• Over a third (35 percent) of those in Brazil favour customer service, whilst spa services are the most important for Chinese travellers with almost half (45 percent) saying that spa services are the most important attribute instead.

Commonalities Amongst all Travellers:

• A third of all travellers (34 percent) belong to a hotel loyalty program. Of those who do, 62 percent indicate that loyalty program membership influences their hotel choice.

• Regardless of nationality, the majority of travellers (53 percent) agree on the allocation of extra budget to extend a holiday, whilst just under half (47 percent) would upgrade to a better hotel. By contrast, just one in four (25 percent) would be happy to pay extra for hotel facilities, such as spa services.

• Seen as more of a right than a privilege, just under a quarter (24 percent) of those polled would forgo a holiday when faced with budget constraints, opting instead to cut back on fine dining (60 percent) and eating out (44 percent). Of those who plan to keep their holiday, nearly a third (30 percent) travel just once or less a year.

• Just over a third of travellers globally (37 percent) would pay extra to ensure convenience of hotel (i.e. location), with spa facilities (33 percent) and great views (30 percent) also desirable across all nationalities.

• Overall, travellers focus the largest proportion of holiday spend on activities outside of the hotel, as more than a third (37 percent) do so on excursions, with shopping and dining-out a close second (23 percent, respectively).

About Wyndham Hotel Group

Wyndham Hotel Group, part of the Wyndham Worldwide (NYSE:WYN) family of companies, is the world's largest hotel company with over 7,150 hotels and approximately 609,300 rooms in 65 countries under the hotel brands: Wyndham Hotels and Resorts®, Ramada®, Days Inn®, Super 8®, Wingate by Wyndham®, Baymont Inn & Suites®, Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham®, Hawthorn Suites® by Wyndham, TRYP by Wyndham™, Howard Johnson®, Travelodge® and Knights Inn®.  In addition, the company has license agreements to franchise the Planet Hollywood Hotels, Dream® and Night® brands and provide management services globally.

All hotels are independently owned and operated excluding certain Wyndham and TRYP by Wyndham hotels as well as certain international Ramada, Days Inn and Super 8 hotels, which may be managed by one of the affiliates of Wyndham Hotel Group. Wyndham Hotel Group is based in Parsippany, N.J. Additional information is available at http://www.wyndhamworldwide.com. For more information about hotel franchising opportunities visit http://www.whgdevelopment.com.

The Wyndham Rewards® loyalty programme has approximately 7 million active members worldwide and offers the choice to earn Wyndham Rewards points, airline miles or rail points for stays at more than 6,500 hotels, resorts and extended stay properties in more than 36 countries worldwide. The Wyndham Rewards program is currently the largest loyalty program in the accommodation industry, based upon number of participating hotels. For more information visit http://www.wyndhamrewards.com/U.K..

Survey Methodology

The survey was conducted by IFOP Asia (http://www.ifop.com) between 18 and 28 April, 2012. For this research, 5,617 interviews were fielded among nationally representative adults, ages 21 years and older, in the following markets: Brazil, Canada, China, the United Kingdom and the United States. All interviews were conducted online in either English and/or in local languages.

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Editors:  Photos and logos can be downloaded from the Wyndham Worldwide Media Center, available  here. For more information about Wyndham Worldwide Corporation and its businesses, go to  http://www.wyndhamworldwide.com.