Ctrip plans to open 1st overseas call center in Scotland

Nasdaq-listed Ctrip plans to set up its first overseas call center in Scotland as the company aims to provide quality services to meet demand  from the booming outbound tourism market, China’s biggest online tourism website said today. 

Plans for the call center in Edinburg came after Ctrip acquired Scotland-based Skyscanner for 12 billion yuan (US$19.0 billion). 

Ctrip will continue to invest overseas, Chief Executive Jane Sun said during a meeting with Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland's First Minister.

In 2017, the number of Chinese tourists to Scotland jumped 120 percent and they spent 14,412 yuan on average during the trip, a 50 percent growth from a year ago, said Ctrip.

Besides expanding overseas, Ctrip also intends to tap new technologies like artificial intelligence, big data and cloud computing to boost its revenue and better serve tourists, Sun added.

Ctrip, with more than 300 million registered users, posted a net profit of 2.1 billion yuan in 2017, reversing a 1.4 billion yuan loss in the previous year.