www.timesonline.co.uk Britain is seen by the Chinese as an expensive, old-fashioned, bureaucratic and slightly miserable place to visit, according to British tourist chiefs.
With the Olympics in Beijing underway they are preparing to launch a charm offensive on the world's most populuous nation to break down the stereotype that the British are all about Charles Dickens and Sherlock Holmes.
Outbound tourism from China, the world's fastest-growing economy, is expected to reach 100 million people over the next decade as new, upwardly mobile social classes broaden their horizons beyond Shenzhen and Chongqing.
Visit Britain, the agency responsible for promoting Britain abroad, wants the Chinese to think of Salisbury and Coniston rather than Stockholm and Cannes when booking their next holiday to Europe. Its delegation will use the Games to showcase Britain through trade shows, diplomatic meetings and parties at London House, a specially constructed hospitality venue in downtown Beijing featuring British food and music.
The opportunity for direct marketing has been created by London's position as the next Olympic host city, which grants Britain an official role when the Games are handed over officially by the Mayor of Beijing to Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, on August 24.
Sandie Dawe, who is leading the Olympic Games tourism strategy, said that it aimed to "reinforce a vibrant image of Britain that appeals to tomorrow's travellers".
More than a fifth of people surveyed in 35 countries said that they were more likely to visit Britain in the next few years because of the London Games. But Britain faces challenges in wooing the Chinese, mostly because of tighter immigration rules. A British visa, the most expensive in Europe, is perceived as the second-hardest to obtain after an American one.
Five times as many Chinese visit Paris as London because France is signed up to the Schengen Agreement, which allows them to travel around certain EU states on a single visa.
Tourist chiefs are pushing the Government to offer a "Schengen-plus" bolt-on visa for Chinese tourists that would make it simpler and cheaper to extend their trip to Britain. The country also has to overcome the perception - reinforced by the Heathrow Terminal 5 debacle - that it is a difficult place to travel through.
Visit Britain is leading a "Welcome to Britain taskforce", involving immigration agencies and airport operators, to improve first impressions at the border and beyond. The move echoes China's own attempts to brighten its image before the Beijing Olympics with the introduction of smiley-face badges at passport control, where foreign visitors are encouraged to rate their immigration officer for friendliness.
In 2006 Britain drew 107,000 Chinese visitors who spent £104 million.
Prospective Chinese tourists view Britain through detective novels and old films such as The 39 Steps, associating the country with bowler hats, fog and bearded men with walking sticks, according to a survey for Visit Britain.
The Beijing charm offensive is part of a build-up of activity to 2012, which the Government claims will be worth more than £2 billion to the visitor economy and will spread the benefits of the Olympics beyond London. "The perceptions of our welcome are not as good as they should be," said Tom Wright, chief executive of Visit Britain. "When the world sees Britain celebrating it will help to change some of those old perceptions that are still defined through the prism of Dickens and Sherlock Holmes."
|