All-around service is key to meeting Chinese needs abroad

Passengers check in at Hainan Airlines. Photo provided to China Daily

Even as many tourism groups have been divesting themselves of properties, HNA Tourism has been on a spending spree. It vaunts a seamless service network including online booking, accommodation and online payments. The group now has holdings in Hong Thai Travel Services, Aberdeen Tours in the US and Caissa Touristic of AG, a German-based travel agency.

In June, HNA Tourism's assets were worth 110 billion yuan ($17.9 billion), and revenue in the first half of the year was 15.6 billion yuan.

"With hotels and airlines under the same umbrella, HNA Tourism can offer lower prices, including cheaper packages for customers traveling to Europe," Zhang says.

In 2012, HNA Group bought 48 percent of the French airline Aigle Azur and became its second-largest stakeholder. Aigle Azur operates 12 aircraft in France and Algeria and carried 1.8 million passengers in 2011.

"France is a major tourism destination for Chinese tourists, and by buying a stake in the company we have better coverage and visibility in the country," the company says.

Earlier this year, Hainan Airlines launched a flight from Hangzhou to Paris. This is the fifth route to Europe that HNA operates after it had launched flights to Moscow, St. Petersburg, Brussels and Berlin.

Caissa Touristic spearheads HNA Tourism's European expansion. Last year Caissa China's tourism products to Europe accounted for 17 percent of China's total travel business to Europe.

"There are three major elements in a tourism company: travel agencies, flights and hotels," Zhang says. "After we bought Caissa in 2011, our agencies have become stronger. Caissa is a Germany-based company and has valuable assets in Europe, which is good way for us to enter the European market."

The European tour agency also works as a barometer of airlines. When the agency shows that travelers' numbers are ebbing, the airline can reduce fares to attract more customers, and when demand returns, they can be brought up.