Holidays abroad a click away

Expedia, the world's leading online travel agent, has announced it is to extend coverage of international hotels on the Chinese online travel provider eLong. The company, which has a 52% stake in eLong, will provide an enlarged database of Chinese language hotel profiles, including photos and virtual tours, on the website. Expedia is betting that as mainland Chinese holiday abroad in ever greater numbers they will choose to plan their trips using the internet, and move away from the cash culture. Combined revenue from domestic and international travel hit US$95.9 billion last year, up 12.4% on 2004, as 30 million Chinese ventured abroad.