Dragon Trail International

What Dragon Trail International does

Dragon Trail International is a Beijing-headquartered B2B marketing solutions company that helps international travel, tourism, and MICE brands enter and grow in the Chinese market. Founded circa 2015 and operating for over a decade with offices in Beijing (HQ) and London, the firm serves national and destination tourism organizations (Singapore Tourism Board, VisitBritain, PromPeru, South African Tourism, Tourism New Zealand, Oman), airlines and cruise lines (Air France), hotels and resorts, museums and attractions (Disneyland), and select non-travel consumer brands (Whitley Neill Gin). Its service portfolio spans five core areas: Digital Marketing, B2B Marketing, Events, Research & Strategy, and Representation.

The company's technology backbone is CTA Live, a proprietary all-in-one virtual event platform delivered via WeChat mini-program and web browser, supporting bilingual webinars, virtual fam trips, hybrid conferences, and one-to-one business matchmaking. It complements CTA Live with a proprietary social media rankings system that tracks international travel brand performance on WeChat, Weibo, and Xiaohongshu across six verticals (NTOs, DMOs, airlines, cruise lines, museums, hotels), published as weekly and quarterly ranking reports. Additional recurring research products include Sentiment Reports and Education Rankings, alongside the China Travel Academy, a training platform for travel-trade professionals.

Dragon Trail operates a project-based professional services revenue model with custom, non-publicly-disclosed pricing for B2B clients. Go-to-market is sales-led and event-driven: the firm runs multi-city roadshows, fam trips, trade shows, and hybrid conferences both for individual clients (e.g., a four-city Singapore Tourism Board roadshow generating 3,842 one-on-one meetings) and as an events partner to industry bodies such as TTG Events for IT&CM China. Its distribution relies on direct B2B sales supplemented by industry-body partnerships (PATA, ETOA, NTA, SITE), positioning Dragon Trail as a specialized China-market bridge for global travel and lifestyle brands.

Name

Dragon Trail International

Legal name

北京时代一峰信息技术有限公司

Website

https://dragontrail.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Dragon Trail International is a Beijing-based B2B marketing solutions firm that helps global travel, tourism, and MICE brands enter and grow in the Chinese market through digital marketing, events, research, and representation services, powered by its proprietary CTA Live virtual event platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Travel and Tourism Marketing Services

NAICS

Tour Operators (561520)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

MICE/Group Air & Meetings Travel Management (Corporate Groups) (THAKACAH)

Keywords

• Travel marketing services
• China market entry
• MICE event management
• Chinese digital marketing
• Destination marketing

Headquarters

HQ city

Haidian

HQ country

China

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Digital Marketing Services: Provides digital marketing solutions including social media management, KOL/KOC influencer campaigns, and content marketing for travel and tourism brands targeting Chinese consumers.
2. Events and MICE Services: Organizes roadshows, fam trips, conferences, trade shows, and hybrid events for tourism boards, travel trade, and MICE industry clients.
3. Research and Strategy: Delivers research reports, sentiment reports, brand rankings, and strategic consulting for international travel brands operating in the Chinese market.
4. Representation Services: Provides representation services for tourism boards and travel brands seeking to establish presence and connections in the Chinese travel market.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Dragon Trail International is a B2B marketing solutions company that helps international travel and MICE brands reach Chinese consumers and travel trade through Digital Marketing, B2B Marketing, Events, Research & Strategy, and Representation services. Its offering is supplemented by proprietary research products (WeChat, Weibo, Xiaohongshu, and Education Rankings plus Sentiment Reports), the CTA Live virtual event platform, and the China Travel Academy training platform for travel trade professionals.

Product overview

Dragon Trail International is a marketing solutions company specializing in connecting global travel and MICE brands with Chinese consumers. Their offering combines five core service areas—Digital Marketing, B2B Marketing, Events, Research & Strategy, and Representation—supplemented by proprietary research products including WeChat Rankings, Weibo Rankings, Xiaohongshu Rankings, Education Rankings, and Sentiment Reports. The company also offers CTA Live, a virtual event platform enabling hybrid events, webinars, and business matchmaking, and the China Travel Academy, a training platform for travel trade professionals. Their client portfolio includes tourism boards, airlines, cruise lines, hotels, attractions, and destination marketing organizations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Digital Marketing Digital marketing solutions for travel and MICE brands expanding into the Chinese market, including social media campaigns, KOL/KOC influencer partnerships, and content creation across Chinese platforms (WeChat, Weibo, Xiaohongshu, Douyin).
• B2B Marketing Marketing solutions targeting business-to-business relationships in the travel and MICE industries, including trade engagement, FAM trips, and industry networking programs for Chinese travel trade professionals.
• Events Organization and management of in-person and hybrid events, roadshows, FAM trips, conferences, trade fairs, and virtual exhibitions across China for tourism boards and travel brands.
• Research & Strategy Market research, consumer insights, sentiment analysis, and strategic consulting for international brands entering or expanding in the Chinese travel market.
• Representation Representation services for international brands seeking in-market visibility, partnerships, and trade connections in the Chinese travel and tourism market.
• WeChat Rankings Weekly and quarterly rankings reports tracking the performance of international travel brands' official WeChat accounts, analyzing article views, engagement, and content trends across NTOs, DMOs, airlines, cruise lines, museums and attractions, and hotels.
• Weibo Rankings Rankings and analysis of international travel brands' performance on Weibo, including engagement metrics and content effectiveness.
• Xiaohongshu Rankings Performance tracking and rankings for travel brands on Xiaohongshu (RedNote), monitoring content reach and engagement.
• Sentiment Reports Original surveys and reports providing Chinese consumer and travel trade sentiment insights, helping brands understand market trends and traveler preferences.
• Education Rankings Rankings tracking education-related content and institutions on Chinese social media platforms.
• CTA Live Proprietary all-in-one virtual event platform accessible via WeChat mini-program and web browser, enabling virtual FAM trips, webinars, conferences, matchmaking sessions, and exhibitions with bilingual support and interpretation services.
• China Travel Academy Online training platform hosting courses for travel trade professionals, including destination specialist programs with foundation and advanced courses (e.g., 100% Pure New Zealand Specialist Program).

Quantifiable outcome

• 7.5 million+ video playbacks achieved for Peru campaign
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• COITM (China Outbound International Tourism Market)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerListed as a partner organization. COITM is a China outbound tourism industry organization.
• IT&CM ChinacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership between TTG Events and Dragon Trail for the IT&CM China and CTW China virtual exhibition. Dragon Trail served as virtual event partner, providing their CTA Live platform and event management expertise.
• PATA (Pacific Asia Travel Association)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerListed as a partner organization in Dragon Trail's network.
• ETOA (European Tourism Association)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerListed as a partner organization in Dragon Trail's network.
• NTA (National Travel Association)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerListed as a partner organization in Dragon Trail's network.
• SITE (Society for Incentive Travel Excellence)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerListed as a partner organization in Dragon Trail's network.
• TTG EventscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with TTG Events for IT&CM China exhibition. TTG Events organized the exhibition while Dragon Trail provided virtual event technology and management.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• FleishmanHillard: FleishmanHillard is a global communications agency with a China network and a dedicated travel and tourism practice; it overlaps with Dragon Trail on destination PR and influencer work, but as part of a much broader portfolio.
• WE Communications: WE Communications (formerly Waggener Edstrom) is a global communications and marketing agency with a dedicated China and travel practice; it competes with Dragon Trail for international travel brand briefs, but operates at significantly larger scale across many industries.
• Ogilvy China: Ogilvy is a global marketing network with a substantial China presence and a long-standing travel/tourism practice; it competes for the same international travel brand marketing budgets as Dragon Trail, but as a full-service generalist across many verticals.
• Hill & Knowlton China: Hill & Knowlton operates a global public relations network with established China and travel practices, frequently engaging with NTOs and DMOs on the same kinds of market-entry and brand campaigns Dragon Trail delivers.
• Ruder Finn Asia: Ruder Finn is a global PR firm with deep Asia operations and a long-running travel & lifestyle practice; it pitches against Dragon Trail for destination and travel brand communications, but its scope spans corporate, tech, and healthcare clients beyond travel.

Others

• iClick Interactive: iClick Interactive is a China-focused digital marketing and data technology platform; while not a direct agency competitor, its programmatic, analytics, and WeChat/digital ad offerings increasingly intersect with the technology layer Dragon Trail relies on for campaign execution.

Direct peers

• Hylink Digital Solution: Hylink is a large, China-headquartered digital marketing agency offering integrated digital, social, and e-commerce services to international brands entering China — directly comparable to Dragon Trail's digital marketing and KOL/KOC service line, though with a much wider brand mandate beyond travel.
• Pacific World Travel: Pacific World is a global DMC and MICE services provider with strong Asia expertise; it competes with Dragon Trail for incentive, MICE, and travel trade event programs for international tourism clients, though it is more operations-led versus marketing-led.
• Resonance China: Resonance is a China-based PR, marketing, and social media agency serving international lifestyle, travel, and consumer brands — closely comparable to Dragon Trail in target clientele (overseas brands marketing in China) and service mix (PR, social, influencer, events).
• BCD Travel (Meetings & Events): BCD Travel's M&E division is a global meetings, incentives, conventions, and exhibitions agency that, like Dragon Trail, designs and delivers trade shows, roadshows, and buyer-seller events for tourism and corporate clients, though with a heavier corporate travel orientation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/dragontrail
• Facebookfacebook.com/dragontrailinteractive
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dragon-trail

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Dragon Trail International