China’s New Luxury Consumers
According to the 2025 Hurun Chinese Luxury Consumer Survey, Chinese High Net Worth Individuals (HNWIs) now prioritize travel above all other spending categories, including health and wellness.
The survey covered a total of 750 Chinese high-net-worth individuals with assets of tens of millions, including 32 ultra-high-net-worth individuals with assets of more than USD 13 million. The average total household assets of the respondents were USD 6.55 million. 45% of respondents were from first-tier cities, 41% are from new first-tier cities, and 14% are from second-tier cities. The average age of respondents was 35 years, and 901% of the respondents were married.
THE MODERN CHINESE LUXURY CONSUMER
The Hurun Report highlights that tourism is still the preferred form of entertainment for the average Chinese luxury consumer, followed by food, hot springs, spas, wine tastings and dinner parties. As a reference, more than 41% of the respondents spent well over 30 days vacationing yearly, and travel abroad on average twice a year.
Health and wellness are a priority for HNWIs, with over 90% of them saying they exercise weekly, and they expect to reach financial freedom by age 46.
The average Chinese luxury consumer lives in a 270-sqm home, spends on average 7 days per month travelling for business, and prefers driving SUVs. However, luxury MPVs are also gaining traction, possibly on the heels of more HNWIs hiring full-time chauffeurs.
DESTINATIONS
For the fourth consecutive year, The Maldives was still the most popular option for international travel. France is still one of the top 3 destinations for Chinese HNWIs, as well as Dubai and Singapore. For domestic travel, Sanya, Hainan, and Yunnan remain popular destinations, with Hong Kong ranking third. More interestingly, 48% of respondents mentioned plans to spend more that USD 31,000 on leisure travel in 2026.
13% of Chinese HNWIs also prefer to visit historical sites, followed by sunny beaches (12%), and luxury resorts (11%). Cultural tourism is also growing as a travel category, as well as short-haul luxury travel, and interestingly enough, ocean cruises are also rising in popularity.
THE EVOLUTION OF LIFESTYLE PREFERENCES
The growth in luxury travel has been bucking the trend of luxury spend falling in China, which contracted last year by 3%. The high-end watch, luxury jewelry, and premium handbags categories all fell by 22%, 10% and 9% respectively.
Multiple macro and microeconomic factors are driving the evolution of lifestyle preferences amongst Chinese HNWIs. For instance, running as a sport has taken over golf as the preferred sport, with yoga and hiking also in the top 3. and Chinese electric vehicles have collectively taken over German automotive brands
To learn more about the Hurun Survey, click here.
