Tourism Australia and the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) met in Beijing …
Tourism Australia and the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) met in Beijing to reaffirm their commitment to ‘Honest Travel’ between China and Australia.
At the meeting, dedicated Aussie Specialist agents from Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen agreed to continue promoting quality Australian holiday experiences.
I commend the CNTA for its recently-launched ‘Honest Travel’ campaign and am delighted to confirm Tourism Australia’s commitment to supporting this initiative, said Scott Morrison, Managing Director, Tourism Australia.
The campaign aims to improve the transparency and quality of outbound tour packages and encourages travel agents to operate within a legal and ethical framework, focusing on the protection of consumers’ rights.
China is one of Australia’s most important and fastest growing tourism markets and is destined to expand rapidly over the next few years. Visitor arrivals from China are forecast to grow at more than 16 percent annually to reach over 1.1 million tourists by 2014.
Importantly for Australia, the Chinese market is forecast to be our second largest in terms of its contribution to the Australian economy within the next three years.
To ensure this growth remains sustainable and to ensure that Chinese visitors enjoy a quality tourism experience, we need to carefully manage this important market. The ‘Honest Travel’ program and dedicated Aussie Specialists will help us achieve this.
The meeting is timely given the CNTA’s recent agreement with the Australian Government to expand ADS across the whole of China.
CNTA’s ‘Honest Travel’ approach is well complemented by Australia’s approach to ensuring sustainable growth from China and upholding the integrity of Australia’s tourism experiences.
Since 2001, Tourism Australia has helped contribute to the professionalism of the Chinese tourism industry through its Aussie Specialist Program. There are currently over 500 Aussie Specialist agents across China. Most Chinese travellers call upon the skills and advice of these specialist agents in booking their Australian tour packages.
More recently, Australia strengthened its ADS arrangements. Under the new arrangements, all current ADS agents (Australian inbound tour operators) needed to re-apply for approval, and all applications were rigorously assessed.
We’re serious about supporting you by growing this market in a sustainable manner and maintaining consumer satisfaction, Mr Morrison concluded.
Attendees included CNTA, TA, Beijing Tourism Administration, Shanghai Tourism Administrative Commission, Guangdong Tourism Administration, STOs, ADS participating travel agents and media from Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangdong.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
