More Chinese tourists are expected to travel to Western Australia after government has spent A $1 million on tourism promotion (Sydney Morning Herald)
Western Australia's government has pledged A $1 million to promote Western Australia to Shanghai residents, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. The number of Chinese tourists to Western Australia will increase.
(Tourism Western Australia) 's new marketing strategy will include a "co-operative strategy" aimed at strengthening Chinese awareness of the tourist destination of Western Australia.
The move follows the demolition of the old site of (Scarborough) 's former Kantasio bar, (Contacio Bar), in the Berscapo district, giving way to a Chinese-backed property developer, Sanyo Group (3 Oceans) twin tower development. The project cost A $450 million, and China's investment in Western Australia has been widely discussed.
In fiscal year 2017-2018, about 60,000 Chinese tourists visited Western Australia, up 17.2 percent from the same period last year. During the period, Chinese tourists spent about A $300 million in Western Australia, making China the largest international tourist market in Western Australia.
Since 2016, the number of Chinese tourists has increased by an average of 11.6 percent a year, higher than the national average of 11.3 percent over the same period.
The new strategy will boost business travel and incentive travel by promoting products through existing distributors, building on existing growth, said (Paul Papalia), the head of Western Australia's Tourism Department.
Papparia said the Chinese market has performed strongly since China Southern Airlines opened its Perth-Guangzhou direct flight, and the number of Chinese tourists has more than doubled.
"We recognize the potential for further development in the Chinese market, which is why we will implement the new Chinese market strategy outlined in the two-year Action Plan for Western Australia Tourism." "the plan also includes increasing shipping capacity in China (to Western Australia), adding direct flights and adding existing service shifts," he said.
It is reported that China Southern Airlines provides five times a week Perth-Guangzhou round-trip direct flights, the service provided by the Airbus A330, carrying 258 passengers.
In addition, WSA will encourage local tourism operators to join the China Reading training program to gain an in-depth understanding of Chinese culture in order to get along better with Chinese people.