New Forbes Blog Posted by Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Georg Arlt: “Chinese Visitors to Tasmania Facing Closed Doors”

COTRI Director Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Georg Arlt’s new article “Chinese Visitors to Tasmania Facing Closed Doors” was posted to his Forbes blog on Saturday May 21^st, 2016.

Building upon an interview with an experienced traveller from Chengdu published in the Spring 2016 Edition of the COTRI Market Report, Prof. Dr. Arlt explores the current state of Chinese outbound tourism in the Australian state of Tasmania.

Following the widely-publicised visit of President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan in November 2014, Tasmania has seen a significant growth in interest from Chinese tourists. Accordingly, the State government and tourism organisations are working to make themselves “China ready” and helping local businesses learn how to provide tailored services to this growing group of travellers.

However, the blog post highlights the fact that, in spite of the efforts made to explain the concept of “face” and inform hotel owners that they should provide Chinese guests with slippers, such advice is not addressing the particular behaviour of this group of distinctive travellers.

On account of the fact that Chinese tourists spend their limited vacation days enthusiastically fitting in as many activities as possible, the early closing times of Tasmania’s shops and restaurants can be problematic. The affluent FIT traveller interviewed for the COTRI Market Report, for example, regretted that these early closing times meant she was unable to shop as much as she had hoped and that the family was even forced to eat cup noodles in their hotel room for dinner.

Beyond understanding cultural concepts such as the Chinese aversion to the number 4, local businesses need to appreciate how these tourists’ requirements can be different to those of other travellers and learn to adapt their services appropriately in order to benefit both parties.

Whilst Tasmania is used as a case study in this instance, the situations highlighted in the blog post as the COTRI Market Report will prove valuable to tourism operators in other similar destinations looking to better cater their services to growing numbers of Chinese travellers.

Prof. Dr. Arlt’s article “Chinese Visitors to Tasmania Facing Closed Doors” can be read on his blog at Forbes.com. Please visit this link to read further blogs published by Prof. Dr. Arlt and to subscribe for further updates.

COTRI China Outbound Tourism Research Institute provides expert insights into the worldwide developments of China’s outbound tourism market. As Chinese outbound tourists are travelling to a large range of destinations, our publications cover a number of different regions. Important Chinese visitor activities are analysed, and detailed insights are presented.

With COTRI’s insights you can create a successful business strategy with in-depth market insights, comprehensive qualitative analyses, and future prospects. The recently published Spring 2016 Edition of the COTRI Market Report features in-depth analysis of the developing trends in Chinese outbound tourism, supported by a wealth of qualitative and quantitative statistical research.

Source: Forbes

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