12 December 2005
Chinese tourists want a more flexible itinerary, more contact with locals, and a chance to participate in cultural and recreation activities when they visit Victoria, Monash University research has found.
Professor Betty Weiler and Dr Xin Yu, from the Tourism Research Unit, have identified several ways tour programs in Victoria could be improved to be more satisfying to Chinese visitors. Their findings will be released at a presentation tomorrow.
Travel from China has increased more than 40 per cent over the past three years and is expected to grow a further 20 per cent in the next 12 months.
More than 400 Chinese tourists were questioned about their visit to Victoria to determine how they felt about their experiences and how they could have been improved.
Professor Weiler said most visitors were generally satisfied or very satisfied with their visit to Australia -- which usually included travel to Sydney or the Gold Coast. Only eight per cent reported being generally dissatisfied.
"Visitors made more than 250 written comments about specific aspects of their experience that were not to their liking," she said. "Of these, more than a third were related to how their tour was managed, disappointment with the itinerary or problems with their accommodation.
"Tour guides play an important role in facilitating Chinese visitors' experiences, but there were almost as many comments made about poor quality tour guiding as there were about great tour guiding."
Professor Weiler said efforts should be made to ensure all Chinese-speaking tour guides met an acceptable standard.
"It may be necessary to consider implementing compulsory training and licensing for this sector and do more to recognise excellence in tour guiding," she said.
"Even though visitors may be satisfied with their overall experience, it is important to address these issues because of the potential for negative word-of-mouth."
Professor Weiler said when the tourists were asked to compare their satisfaction with Victoria to other places visited in Australia, 83 per cent of those questioned said Victoria was as least as satisfying if not more satisfying. "They were particularly impressed with the city of Melbourne -- its cleanliness, striking architecture, and parks and gardens," she said.
This research was undertaken with the support and funding of the Sustainable Tourism Cooperative Research Centre and Tourism Victoria.
For further information contact Professor Weiler on +61 3 9904 7104 or Ms Natasha Whalley, Media Communications on +61 3 9905 9201 or 0437 458 457.
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