Europe lure leads to tourism changes

Security issue

A second crucial issue was security in the wake of robberies across Europe, Wang added.

Thirdly, there was a need to make laws and regulations clearer. "We hope the relevant government sectors could better regulate the lawful work of tour operators in Europe, and help protect our federation's members," she said.

"For example, in terms of division of responsibilities between operators in China and those in Europe: Who should organize the tourists, who should carry them. ... We would like the rules to be clearer."

An ongoing example of the efforts toward Chinese travelers was provided by "Welcome Chinese", a certification program developed by the China Tourism Academy in partnership with Select Holding as operating company.

The project aims to assist European tourism providers in their distribution strategy on China and guide them through the best ways to welcome and assist Chinese clients.

"We have created a simple standard of services, which set a bench mark for all providers dealing with the reception and hosting of Chinese tourists," said Jacopo Sertoli, chief executive of Select Holding.

"The standards include a simple but relevant detail such as having a hot pot in the hotel room, to offering payment systems linked to those in China, to having staff speaking Chinese and also written information in the Chinese language."

According to Sertoli, the more Chinese tourism flow to Europe grows and diversifies, the larger the need of tailored services.

"The 'new' Chinese tourists make larger use of new technologies, and they want to travel alone, discover the territory, and do just what they like best," he said.

Xinhua