“In 2010,Croatia saw a surge of Chinese tourists, so we will attach more importance to the Chinese market,”Zlata Merlin,an official from the Croatian Tourism Bureau,told media at the 7th China Outbound Travel&Tourism Market (COTTM),held in Beijing from April 13th to the 15th. She was not alone in mentioning the importance of the Chinese market.Although the Japan earthquake and turmoil in North Africa has cast a cloud over the recovery of China’s outbound tourism,the opening of the COTTM still suggests that foreign countries are optimistic about China’s outbound tourism. Outbound tourism surges Boosted by the rise of the global and domestic economy, an appreciating Chinese currency,and loosened visa restrictions in foreign countries,outbound tourism in China has hit a record high in terms of the number “In 2010, Croatia saw a surge of Chinese tourists, so we will attach more importance to the Chinese market, ” Zlata Merlin, an official from the Croatian Tourism Bureau, told media at the 7th China Outbound Travel & Tourism Market (COTTM), held in Beijing from April 13th to the 15th. She was not alone in mentioning the importance of the Chinese market. Though the Japan earthquake and turmoil in North Africa has cast a cloud over the recovery of China’s outbound tourism, the opening of the COTTM still suggests that foreign countries are optimistic about China’s outbound tourism. Outbound tourism surges Boosted by the rise of the global and domestic economy, an appreciating Chinese currency, and appreciative Chinese currency, and loosened visa restrictions in foreign countries, outbound tourism in China has hit a record high in terms of the number