Yang Feiyue
Irish eyes are smiling at the huge potential of China’s lucrative outbound tourism market. “Our green island has magnificent natural scenery, dynamic cities and unique Irish culture and history — and of course, there are world-renowned golf courses,” says Niall Gibbons, CEO of Tourism Ireland.
Ireland’s fantastic coastlines and stunning scenery have graces many movies and TV series, including Star Wars and Game of Thrones.
Tourism Ireland brought its annual roadshow to Beijing on April 24, moving on to Shanghai, Guangdong province’s capital Guangzhou and Hong Kong over a five-day period.
The annual sales mission aims to enhance and widen networking and business ties between the Irish tourism industry and about 300 leading Chinese travel trade partners and airlines. The goal is to get a bigger slice of the Chinese market in Europe: roughly 4 million Chinese visit the continent every year, Gibbons adds.
2016 marked a strong year for outbound tourism from China.
According to data from the UN World Tourism Organization, international tourism expenditure from the mainland grew to $261 billion in 2016, an increase by 12 percent yearon-year.
The number of outbound travelers rose 6 percent to 135 million last year.
That growth consolidates China’s position as the number one source of tourists in the world since 2012, following a trend of double-digit growth in tourism expenditure every year since 2004.
Tourism Ireland now targets ADS (Approved Destination Status) groups, business tourism, niche tourism (golf ) and independent travelers in Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou and Chengdu, as well as their surrounding markets, says Gibbons.
“Awareness of Ireland is relatively low compared to other European competitors, so increasing travel trade and consumer knowledge of Ireland is an important focus,” he says. Besides media promotion and online marketing, his group has also participated in many travel trade shows in China as it links up with its European friends ahead of the 2018 EU-China Year of Tourism.
Approximately 55,000 Chinese paid visits to the country in 2016, he says, and the number is expected to hit 100,000 in 2020. The country welcomed 9.3 million overseas travelers in 2015, and raked in 4.7 billion euros ($5.1 billion) in tourism income.
The Beijing Utour International Travel Service Co, a major outboundtravel operator in China, has witnessed significant growth in the number of Chinese visitors to Ireland.
“We’ve seen growth in tourist numbers every year since 2013,” says An Linlin, Utour’s Ireland product manager, who says her company often combines Ireland with UK travel packages.
“At the beginning, we only had 10 groups (of about 25-30 people each) to the country every year, and now we have more than 10 groups every month,” An says.
The serene and primitive environment are most appealing for the Chinese, and golf is a plus, An adds.
Most of visitors are in their 30s and 40s, she says, and they can experience local farm fun and life, and hike along the Cliffs of Moher while taking in the grand view.
Shopping has also been put on the schedule, An says.
The Wild Atlantic Way and Ire- land’s Ancient East offer exciting ways to explore fascinating history and heritage as well as an opportunity to experience local unique culture, Irish music and dance.
The island’s golf is world-class with more than 500 quality golf courses.
Tourism Ireland is ensuring that the island of Ireland is ready for Chinese visitors.
“We realize they have specific dietary needs and usually prefer Chinese food while traveling, and we are very willing to meeting these requirements,” Gibbons says.
Ireland has a significant Chinese population and a wide variety of Chinese restaurants, which are popular with both residents and Chinese visitors, he adds.
Chinese marketing materials, websites and staff that speak the language are all available to serve the needs of Chinese visitors.
Moreover, Tourism Ireland has advised hotels and B&Bs targeting Chinese visitors to offer free Wi-Fi, green tea, toiletries and slippers in the room, Gibbons says.
A brochure with information on Unique Irish Shopping brands has recently been launched and will also be available in Chinese. Information on how to do tax refunds will also be offered to help Chinese visitors who love to shop.
Tourism Ireland is currently working on China Ready training programs and several local providers have already completed similar training programs, learning about Chinese language, culture, cuisine and preferences, according to Gibbons.
There are currently no direct flights between the Chinese mainland and Ireland, or between Hong Kong and Ireland, though negotiations are well under way with a major carrier for such a connection, Gibbons says.
Air China, China Eastern, China Southern Airlines, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic all fly direct from China to the UK, where Chinese can make easy connections to Ireland. Many airlines have connecting flights to the country through European hubs such as KLM through Amsterdam, Air France through Paris and Lufthansa through Frankfurt.
Etihad Airways operates from Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu and Hong Kong to Dublin, via Abu Dhabi. Emirates connect China and Dublin with Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Zhengzhou in Henan province and Hong Kong, via Dubai.
New for 2017 are links via the new Qatar Airways service from Doha to Dublin, beginning in June.
Under the British-Irish visa scheme, some Irish short-stay visas will allow onward travel to the UK and some UK visitor visas will allow onward travel to Ireland.
The UK experienced a large increase in visitor numbers last year. To meet the capacity, the Beijing Visa Application Center doubled its space (with an extra floor in the same building). The opening hours of the visa offices are also extended during peak times.
“This is significant as presently most Chinese traveling to Ireland are doing so as part of a UK + Ireland package,” Gibbons says.
Utour’s An says her company will develop in-depth tours exclusively for Ireland in future.
There are many castles and manors in mint condition in the country that are worth digging into, An says.
“In addition, many students have gone to the country to learn and practice equestrian sports,” she adds.
Contact the writer at yangfeiyue@chinadaily.com.cn