The annual number of Chinese residents traveling overseas will reach 200 million by 2030, a global traveling solution supplier predicted.

The barriers for Chinese residents to travel overseas, such as visa requirements and transportation expenses, will come down in the future, and advanced technologies will help travelers select their tour routes more easily, Amadeus IT Group SA, a main global distribution system supplier headquartered in Spain, said in a report on China's tourism industry released on Wednesday.

Statistics from the National Tourism Administration show that Chinese residents made 83.18 million trips overseas in 2012.

Visa requirements are one of the main barriers for Chinese travelers. Some countries have recognized the importance of Chinese travelers and they are easing the visa application process.

Meanwhile, some foreign budget airlines, such as Air Asia, Jetstar and Scoot Pte Ltd, are actively exploring China's market to make traveling affordable for Chinese residents.

In 2012, 32 percent of business travelers and 50 percent of leisure travelers in China took budget airlines to travel overseas, according to the report.

"The Chinese market has maintained a stable and fast growth, and it is very important for the Asia and Pacific tourism market," said Mark Dougan, executive chairman of Frost & Sullivan, a company from the US providing market research and entrusted by Amadeus with the report.

Chinese travelers have already been the main source of growth in Asia's tourism market, said Wang Zhifa, deputy head of the national tourism authority.

Chinese female business travelers going abroad are expected to increase by 232 percent by 2030, the report said.

(China Daily 03/28/2013 page13)