China Self-guided Auto Tours Market Report 2021
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Report Summary
“Self-drive tours will continue to fuel the travel market’s recovery. Long-haul self-driving is a pillar of traveller volume growth. The most enthusiastic consumers demonstrate sophisticated expectations for self-drive tours. Managing emotional wellbeing is their major motivation for participation. There is an opportunity to target solo self-drive consumers, an emerging but underserved group, because self-drive tours fit well with consumers who look for stay-alone moments to manage emotional wellbeing.”
– Saskia Zhao, Senior Research Analyst
This Report looks at the following areas:
- Consumer segmentation for self-drive travellers
- Motivations to participate in self-drive tours
- Car hire usage, accommodation choices and travel companions for self-drive tours
- Volume growth opportunities for self-drive tours in China
- Business opportunities in the self-drive tour market
Table of Contents
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Overview
- What you need to know
- Covered in this report
- Report scope
- What you need to know
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Executive Summary
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- The market
- Impact of COVID-19 less severe on self-drive tours than overall travel market
- Figure 1: Total self-drive travellers, 2013-2020 (est)
- Domestic self-drive tours lead recovery
- Figure 2: Domestic self-drive travellers, 2013-2020 (est)
- Domestic segment is forecast to recover to pre-outbreak level in 2022
- Figure 3: Forecast of domestic self-drive travellers, 2021-2025
- High interest and positive association support recovery
- Suppliers upgraded service quality
- Outbound self-drive will remain niche
- Figure 4: Outbound self-drive travellers, 2013-2020 (est)
- The consumer
- Most passionate travellers “Enthusiasts” are motivated by emotional wellbeing
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- Figure 5: Attitudes towards self-drive tours, by consumer segmentation, November 2020
- Opportunity: target Enthusiasts for long-haul domestic self-drive
- Figure 6: Domestic travel participation, November 2020
- Outbound self-drive will stay niche
- Figure 7: Outbound travel participation, November 2020
- Self-drive tour an occasion to engage with car owners
- Figure 8: Roles and car usage of self-drive tours, November 2020
- Enthusiasts more likely to have higher budget for care hire
- Figure 9: Domestic car hire budget, November 2020
- High participation among solo self-drive travellers
- Figure 10: Travel companions for self-drive tours, November 2020
- Luxury hotels can target young solo self-drive consumers
- Figure 11: Accommodation usage for self-drive tours during the period February-November 2020, by travel companions, November 2020
- Safety and driving fatigue are the top barriers
- Figure 12: Barriers to participating in self-drive tours – generated by open-end, November 2020
- What we think
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Issues and Insights
- Emotional wellbeing is the catalyst for self-drive tour participation
- The facts
- The implications
- Target the underserved solo self-drive consumers
- The facts
- The implications
- Figure 13: Travel to manage emotional wellbeing by varied sources of emotional discomfort, April 2020
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- Figure 14: Attitudes towards self-drive tours, by experiences of solo travel, November 2020
- Self-drive tour as a featured scenario in automobile marketing
- The facts
- The implications
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- Figure 15: Mini Countryman self-drive tour live streams, March 2020
- Emotional wellbeing is the catalyst for self-drive tour participation
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The Market – What You Need to Know
- COVID-19 hit self-drive tours less severely than the overall market
- The domestic segment dominates
- Self-drive tours powered recovery of domestic travel
- Domestic self-drive tours forecast to reach pre-outbreak level by end of 2022
- More car owners and positive associations will encourage consumer participation
- Upgraded services for self-drive tours
- COVID-19 hit self-drive tours less severely than the overall market
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Market Size
- Volume drops for self-drive tours due to COVID-19 but impact is less severe than on the overall market
- Figure 16: Total self-drive travellers, 2013-2020 (est)
- Volume drops for self-drive tours due to COVID-19 but impact is less severe than on the overall market
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Market Segmentation and Forecast
- Domestic self-drive dominates
- Figure 17: Self-drive travellers, market segmentation, 2013-2020 (est)
- Self-drive’s share of domestic travel expected to increase
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- Figure 18: Domestic self-drive travellers, 2013-2020 (est)
- Domestic self-drive forecast to return to pre-outbreak level in 2022
- Figure 19: Forecast of domestic self-drive travellers, 2021-25
- Outbound segment back down to 2014 levels
- Figure 20: Outbound self-drive travellers, 2013-2020 (est)
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- Figure 21: Growth rate comparison, outbound self-drive vs total outbounders, 2014-19
- Domestic self-drive dominates
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Market Factors
- Self-drive trips are a major usage occasion for drivers
- Growing car ownership
- Figure 22: Small passenger car ownership, 2015-2019
- Self-driving is highly associated with health protection
- Association with mental wellbeing makes self-drive tours more resilient when leisure budgets are spent carefully
- Uncertainties of COVID-19
- Self-drive trips are a major usage occasion for drivers
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Who’s Innovating?
- Ctrip upgrades car hire services
- Figure 23: Car hire service by Ctrip, 2020
- Renovated highway service areas in Jiangsu create better self-drive experiences
- Figure 24: Highway rest area at Yangcheng Lake in Jiangsu province, 2020
- Ctrip upgrades car hire services
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The Consumer – What You Need to Know
- Short-haul self-drive aids recovery while future growth will be driven by long-haul self-drive
- Outbound self-drive will remain a niche choice
- Self-drive tours an occasion to connect with car owners
- Enthusiasts are the key target audience
- Solo self-drive potential occasion to target Gen-Zers
- Short-haul self-drive aids recovery while future growth will be driven by long-haul self-drive
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Four Types of Self-Drive Tour Consumers
- Four types of self-drive tourists
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- Figure 25: Self-drive tour consumer snapshot, cluster analysis, November 2020
- Portraits of self-drive consumers’ sentiment
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- Figure 26: Attitudes towards self-drive tours, by consumer segmentation, November 2020
- Demographic profiles of self-drive tour consumers
- Figure 27: Self-drive consumer groups – enthusiasts, by demongraphics, November 2020
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- Figure 28: Self-drive tour consumer groups – Unique Experience Seekers, by demongraphics, November 2020
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- Figure 29: Self-drive tour consumer groups – Responsible Travellers, by demongraphics, November 2020
- Four types of self-drive tourists
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Domestic Self-Drive Participation
- Short-haul self-drive stimulates domestic segment recovery
- Figure 30: Domestic travel participation, November 2020
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- Figure 31: Domestic travel participation during the period February-November 2020, by specific past travel experience, November 2020
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- Figure 32: Domestic short-haul self-drive tour recovery, by age, November 2020
- Enthusiasts supported long-haul self-drive return
- Figure 33: Domestic self-drive tour participation between February and November 2020, by consumer segmentation, November 2020
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- Figure 34: Self-drive tour participation between January 2019 and January 2020, by consumer segmentation, November 2020
- Self-drive tours grow thanks to new users driving to neighbouring provinces
- Figure 35: Participation in domestic self-drive tours, past vs future, November 2020
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- Figure 36: Structure of potential long-haul self-drive travellers in the next 12 months, November 2020
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- Figure 37: Reasons not to participate in self-drive tours to neighbouring provinces in the next 12 months, by past self-drive tour experiences, November 2020
- Target audience for driving to neighbouring provinces are Enthusiasts in their 30s
- Figure 38: Willingness to participate in self-drive tours to neighbouring provinces in the next 12 months, by age, November 2020
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- Figure 39: User growth ratio* for domestic long-haul self-drive tours, by age, November 2020
- Figure 40: Willingness to participate in self-drive tours to neighbouring provinces in the next 12 months, by consumer segmentation, November 2020
- Short-haul self-drive stimulates domestic segment recovery
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Outbound Self-Drive Participation
- Outbound self-drive will remain niche in the future
- Figure 41: Outbound travel participation, November 2020
- Young mothers with past outbound self-driving experiences are key target group
- Figure 42: Participation in outbound self-drive tours (a) – before outbreak vs next 12 months, by demographics, November 2020
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- Figure 43: Willingness to participate in self-drive tours (a) in the next 12 months, by past outbound self-drive experiences, November 2020
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- Figure 44: Participation in outbound self-drive tours (a), by consumer segmentation, November 2020
- Outbound self-drive will remain niche in the future
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Roles and Companions for Self-Drive Tours
- The majority of participants are drivers
- Figure 45: Roles in self-drive tours, November 2020
- Self-drive tours able to serve consumers with varied travel companions
- Figure 46: Travel companions for self-drive tours, November 2020
- Target young people for solo self-drive tours
- Figure 47: Self-drive tour companions – solo travellers, by demongraphics, November 2020
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- Figure 48: Attitudes towards self-drive tours, by experiences of solo travel, November 2020
- The majority of participants are drivers
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Accommodation for Self-Drive Tours
- Economical and all-inclusive, convenient choices are most popular
- Figure 49: Accommodation usage for self-drive tours during the period February-November 2020, November 2020
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- Figure 50: Accommodation usage for self-drive tours during the period February-November 2020, by travel companions, November 2020
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- Figure 51: Accommodation usage for self-drive tours during the period February-November 2020, by consumer segmentation, November 2020
- Luxury hotels can target Gen-Zers travelling solo
- Figure 52: Usage of luxury hotels by Gen-Zers during the period February-November 2020, November 2020
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- Figure 53: Usage of luxury hotels – solo travel vs only with a spouse, by age, November 2020
- Economical and all-inclusive, convenient choices are most popular
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Car Hire Usage and Budget
- The majority uses private cars for travel
- Figure 54: Car usage for self-drive tours, November 2020
- Enthusiasts more likely to hire cars
- Figure 55: Car usage for self-drive tours, by consumer segmentation, November 2020
- Young males and mature females have higher car hire budgets
- Figure 56: Domestic car hire budget, November 2020
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- Figure 57: Domestic car hire budget, by age and gender, November 2020
- Figure 58: Domestic car hire budget, by consumer segmentation, November 2020
- The majority uses private cars for travel
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Barriers to Joining Self-Drive Tours in Future
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- Figure 59: Barriers to participating in self-drive tours – generated by open-end, November 2020
- Enthusiasts and Unique Experience Seekers temporarily stop self-drive tours
- Figure 60: Not participate in the future, by consumer segmentation, November 2020
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- Figure 61: Barriers to participating in self-drive tours – generated by open-end, by consumer segmentation, November 2020
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Meet the Mintropolitans
- Higher participation in domestic self-drive tours among MinTs
- Figure 62: Domestic self-drive tour participation recovery, by consumer classification, November 2020
- MinTs more willing to drive to neighbouring provinces
- Figure 63: Future domestic self-drive participation, by consumer classification, November 2020
- MinTs more engaged in car hire
- Figure 64: Car hire service, by consumer classification, November 2020
- Figure 65: Domestic car hire budget for future self-drive tours, by consumer classification, November 2020
- Higher participation in domestic self-drive tours among MinTs
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Appendix – Market Size and Forecast
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- Figure 66: Forecast of domestic self-drive travellers, 2021-25
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Appendix – Methodology and Abbreviations
- Methodology
- Fan chart forecast
- Abbreviations
- Methodology
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Appendix – Other Consumer Data
- Attitudes towards self-drive tours
- Figure 67: Attitudes towards self-drive tours
- Attitudes towards self-drive tours
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