Chinese tourists spending big in Brazil for Olympics

Chinese tourists in Brazil for the 2016 Rio Olympics are each set to spend 72,145 yuan ($10,860) on average, according to the latest report from Ctrip, one of China's leading online travel service providers.

The report, released on Friday, shows that other South America countries beside Brazil have also benefited from the recent enthusiasm surrounding the Games.

In July, the average expenditure of Chinese visitors in South America was about 53,479 yuan, 10 times what Chinese outbound tourists usually spend abroad, on average, according to the report.

This month, the increased cost of hotels and air travel in Brazil has pushed up average expenditure there to 72,145 yuan.

According to Ctrip, the majority of Chinese travelers in Rio de Janeiro are from Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Guangzhou of Guangdong province and Shenyang of Liaoning province.

The company said that Brazil ranks 60th on the list of overseas tourism destinations visited by Chinese travelers. Yet Chinese outbound tourists in South America account for fewer than 0.05 percent of the total.

"However, we have seen rapid growth in the first eight months of this year. The visits paid by Chinese travelers to South America have jumped by 150 percent year-on-year," said Fan Xuguang, of Ctrip's public affairs department.

"Popular tourism destinations include Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Chile and Bolivia. New emerging tourism destinations explored by Chinese tourists include Uruguay, Ecuador, and Colombia."