According to statistics from the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), 30 million travelers made an online travel booking in 2009, up almost 78% year on year.
Despite the recession 30 million travelers made an online booking, up almost 78% on the previous year. The Chinese are still traveling abroad and Nielsen reported that 85% would "definitely" or "probably" take a trip out of the country in the coming year.
In their 2009 China Outbound Travel Monitor (.pdf), Nielsen found that the majority of Chinese travelers turn to the internet to search for destination websites ahead of their leisure trips.
BizReport says that according to the CNNIC the growth in online travel booking is second only to online payments (80.9%) and exceeds that of online stocking (67%), online banking (62.3%) and online shopping (45.9%).