Trip.com Inbound China Travel Drives 2025 Growth

Trip.com Group reported strong growth in inbound travel to China alongside solid 2025 financial results, with international OTA platform bookings rising 60% year over year. The company said it served approximately 20 million inbound travelers to China during the period, underscoring the segment’s expanding role in its strategy.

Reporting fourth quarter and full-year 2025 earnings, CEO Jane Sun described inbound tourism as a key growth driver that supports broader economic development and job creation. She said the company is working closely with local partners to stimulate incremental demand and build long-term value across destinations.

Trip.com Group believes inbound travel represents significant untapped potential. Currently accounting for about 0.5% of China’s GDP, Sun said the contribution could grow five to tenfold over time.

Executive chairman James Liang emphasized travel’s broader economic importance, calling it essential infrastructure that enables mobility, connection and shared growth. He said inbound tourism plays a meaningful role in expanding opportunity and supporting local communities, with the company continuing to scale its efforts through a customer-centric approach.

AI remains a major strategic focus. During the earnings call, Liang said future investment priorities include inbound tourism, social responsibility and artificial intelligence innovation. Sun added that Trip.com is shaping the evolution of AI agents in travel rather than simply adapting to them.

She said the core OTA model rests on inspiration, transaction and service, with AI agents enhancing discovery while reinforcing the importance of booking and servicing layers. Trip.com is developing direct agent-to-agent transactional capabilities with global AI partners while advancing its own native AI tools to handle complex, multistep trip planning and booking.

The company recently reported that AI-assisted bookings via its TripGenie assistant rose 400% year over year, while usage of AI tools such as hotel comparison and live translation increased 300%.

Financially, Trip.com posted Q4 net revenue of $2.2 billion, up 21%, while full-year revenue climbed 17% to nearly $9 billion. Net income reached $613 million in the quarter and $4.8 billion for the year. Adjusted EBITDA totaled $2.7 billion for 2025.

Accommodation revenue rose 21% to $3.7 billion for the year, while transportation ticketing revenue increased 11% to $3.2 billion, reflecting sustained global travel demand.

Sources: AirGuide Business airguide.info, bing.com

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Trip.com Inbound China Travel Drives 2025 Growth

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