VisitBritain has launched a new mark to signal which businesses are ready to cater for Chinese tourists.
The new GREAT China Welcome Chartermark has been launched to help Chinese visitors spot hotels, attractions and tour operators that provide information in Mandarin and offer services specifically for their needs.
The tourism board hopes the launch will encourage more UK businesses to adopt schemes to appeal more to Chinese tourists as spend and inbound numbers continue to rise.
So far 100 businesses have signed up for the charter, which is free to apply for.
The mark was launched at Blenheim Palace today with the palace’s Lady Henrietta Spencer-Churchill; cultural minister counsellor Mr Xiang Xiaowei and British Airways’ executive chairman Keith Williams all in attendance.
The group planted a tree to signal friendship in the grounds of the palace.
“Record numbers of Chinese visitors are already coming to Britain and we want to ensure we continue to compete in the world’s biggest outbound market. Improving our welcome is key to continuing this growth. The GREAT China Welcome Charter will help differentiate Britain from its European neighbours and work towards our target of welcoming 650,000 Chinese visits a year by 2020 – worth nearly £1.1 billion annually to the UK economy,” said Sandie Dawe, CEO of VisitBritain.
A summit will be held in London soon to help businesses become more ‘China-ready’ and an online guide will also be launched.
“Britain is an increasingly popular destination for people across China. The GREAT China Welcome Chartermark will help Chinese visitors enjoy their visits more with quality services by the British practitioners. We appreciate Britain’s commitment to welcoming Chinese visitors to enjoy this great country,” said Xiaowei.
The number of Chinese visitors to the UK reached 200,000 for the first time last year, with spend at GBP400 million for the first nine months of the year alone.
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