With local travel agencies and tourism officials predicting
China will allow domestic tour groups to visit 12 European Union
countries as of May 1, European booths were crowded when the 2004
Shanghai World Travel Fair opened Thursday.
The 12 EU countries signed a memo with the Chinese government
last Thursday. Many in the industry saw it as a sign the government
is preparing to grant them Approved Destination Status, a step that
generally takes a few months to finalize.
The 12 countries include Spain, France, Greece, Italy and the
Netherlands.
Currently, domestic tour groups are only approved to visit 28
countries, including Germany, Thailand and Australia.
"There is no question Europe will be the new favorite
destination for Chinese travelers during future weeklong holidays,
such as Labor Day in May and National Day in October," said Chen
Shuiqin, a manager with Shanghai CTS (Group) Co. Ltd.
That doesn't mean local tourists will stop visiting traditional
destination in Southeast Asia, Chen said. She noted that China’s
huge population means there is plenty of room for growth in the
industry.
She said the most popular trips generally cost less than 5,000
yuan (US$602), far less than the majority of European
vacations.
Wang Chen, a manager with Shanghai Jinjiang Overseas Affairs
Service Ltd., said he was impressed to discover European travel
brochures being handed out at the fair are printed in Chinese.
"There are always European booths at the annual China
International Travel Mart, but the material they hand out is always
in English. It is different now as they are quite clear about who
the target (audience) is," said Wang.
Marieke Reichwein, a consultant for the Netherlands Tourism
Bureau, said her country will offer local travel agencies training
and information about popular tourism sites.
Spain's Andalucia Tourism Board has spent the past 18 months
researching China's tourism market.
"Chinese tourists are interested in food, flamenco dance and
history more than basking on the beach," said Federico Miro
Vazquez, an ATB official.
Several EU countries plan to set up tourism offices in China to
deal with the possible avalanche of Chinese visitors.
"We will soon set up an office in China, but I don't know when
or where," said Emmy Dede-Nagata of the Greek National Tourism
Organization.
"I can say for sure that a website in Chinese will be ready in
five months."
The trade fair, the first of what is scheduled to be an annual
event, will run through Sunday at the Shanghai New International
Expo Center.
(Shanghai Daily February 20, 2004)