China tourist arrivals rising, next – big mamas
Travel agencies eye niche market from China to draw more tourists
Visitors from China are growing in numbers. Now, Malaysian travel agencies are eyeing the ‘dama’, middle-aged mothers who love travelling in groups, square dancing at public parks – and most of all have big bucks to splash.
PETALING JAYA: Malaysian travel agencies are eyeing China’s “big mothers” with deep pockets in their push to capture a niche market in tourism.
Known as dama in Mandarin, these big mamas or mothers are middle-aged Chinese women who love square dancing in groups at public parks or open spaces.
Dama, estimated by Chinese media to number more than 100 million, have a say in family expenditure. They like to do everything in a group including dancing and travelling.
“After Hari Raya, there will be a square dance show in Melaka,” Malaysian Inbound Tourism Association president Uzaidi Udanis said.
Dama drew global attention in 2013 when they collectively bought about 300 tonnes of gold worth 100 billion yuan in a short period of time when the price of the precious metal plunged.
Although critics are of the view that these damas are a public nuisance for the noise they make during their open gatherings, industry players here are seeing business opportunities from their activities.
Besides dama, Uzaidi said that travel agencies here were also eyeing niche markets of travellers from China who love fishing, diving or taking part in marathons.
“Our members are trying their best to be more aggressive, targeting not just senior citizens in China but also the niche markets. These niche segments are very willing to spend,” he said.
“Fishing trips are getting very popular in China, especially among highend tourists over the last two years. Mauritius and the Philippines are popular destinations. Locally, Rompin in Pahang is popular,” he said.
Uzaidi said the association would be participating in a fishing expo next month in Suzhou and a travel expo in Beijing.
“We will be given 3,000sq ft (280sq m) at the expo to showcase Malaysia in Suzhou,” he said.
He said China is a huge market for tourism with around 150 million people who have passports to travel.
“Last year, tourist arrivals from China to Malaysia was at 2.9 million.
“In comparison, tourist arrivals from China to Thailand was at 10 million. There is a lot room for us to grow,” he said.