Publisher's delight for printed travel guide demand

A section of travel books at Xinhua Bookstore in Beijing's Wangfujing street. Travel guidebooks are among the best-selling publications at bookstores. Photos By Chen Xiaogen / for China Daily

Despite the invasion of e-books, publishers of printed travel guides in China seem to be at ease as the market - although niche - is still growing, thanks to the country's booming tourism.

As one of the best-sellers among guidebooks in China, China DIY Tour sold around 300,000 copies in 2012, its highest by volume since it was first published in 2002, and is updated annually.

"People's reading habits are changing, but there is still a stable number of readers who prefer printed guidebooks, if fierce competition among dozens of guidebooks in the market is any evidence," says David Zheng, an editor at Beijing Zito Book, the publisher of China DIY Tour.

In the past two years, there has been a 16 percent drop in sales of printed books, but also a two-digit growth in sales of their digital versions, according to Zheng, who says the market for guidebooks will remain relatively stable at least for the next three years.

"While we face many challenges with online travel guides, the impact is not as big as people imagine," he says.

Zheng's outlook is bolstered by growth figures in China's tourism industry.