Gyeongbokgung Palace in northern Seoul, South Korea, is a popular destination for Chinese tourists.(Photo by Liu Yunmin/Liu Debin/Xu Lin/China Daily)
About 63 percent instead listed sightseeing.
"They go overseas to have new experiences," says Hunter Williams, a partner at Oliver Wyman and author of the report.
"They will sure go shopping while they are there, but shopping is not the main reason that drives their trip."
Visitors to Europe and the United States are least likely to be led by shopping. But visitors to South Korea are mostly motivated by retail.
"In some places, to build a big shopping mall in the middle of nowhere is not encouraging anymore because their main reason to visit is sightseeing," he says.
Respondents spend about $1,200 on average per trip.
About 41 percent of that is on shopping, 28 percent on transportation, 16 percent on leisure, food and drink, and 13 percent on accommodation.
