Having commented in the past on Geelong and how they reinvented the city as a destination to come to as opposed to it's old, dowdy manufacturing town, it's good to see some others know whta they are talking about.
I like seeing the word "destination" from marketers. I see they have also indentified the money trail,
now they just have to extract more per Chinese visitor.
While the English are more likely to be found swarming the hostels of Coogee, and the Germans picking fruit in Orange, the Chinese often opt for shorter stays with higher levels of spending, according to data from Tourism Australia.
After going up 1332 steps, the group of climbers stand with a microphone at the ready as one of the world's most beautiful harbours encircles them.
First up, its Teresa Teng's 1975 classic, The Moon Represents my Heart, whose lyrics flash across one of several plasma screens suspended over the torrents of traffic a hundred metres below.
"It is my favourite," said one of the bridge's first karaoke stars, Louis Lee. "I'm singing it on top of the world!"
As the playlist moves to Gong Xi Fa Chai, [Happy New Year] the group, nine strong, really finds their inner Roman Tam, belting out the Chinese New Year ballad over the harbour towards the white sails of the Sydney Opera House.
"There is nothing like this in China," said 40-year-old Andy Ho. "It's only in a room, definitely not on top of a bridge."
"Unique" is the buzzword of the day. It's being sold heavily to all nationalities by local businesses and the state government.
For United States tourists there is ice hockey at Sydney Olympic Park in July, while Destination NSW hopes the Indians will be drawn in by the Parramasala festival in Paramatta, but China remains the most lucrative market, with even the Parkes' Elvis festival being pushed to Chinese Elvis fans.
In 2012, Chinese tourists spent $102 billion while travelling internationally. It is a market that continues to grow, quickly.
Between the September quarters of 2013 and 2014, the number of Chinese visitors grew 14.3 per cent according to figures from Destination NSW, it prompted the state body to set up two offices in mainland China.
"We are taking a whole package approach," said Destination NSW CEO, Sandra Chipchase. "We're encouraging all operators to be China ready, whether that means having a Chinese GPS or having Congee available at the breakfast table."
But Tourism and Transport Forum CEO, Margy Osmond, said Australia's onerous visa restrictions on Chinese tourists are holding us back from really capitalising on the booming Chinese tourism market.
It currently costs Chinese tourists $130 to apply for a tourism visa, followed by 14 pages of paperwork.
In contrast to their mainland counterparts, Hong Kong residents only pay $20 and complete their application online.
"Now that doesn't say come on down does it? We need to radically simplify our visa application processes for mainland Chinese tourists to compete with the rest of the world," said Ms Osmond.
Since 2013, Chinese tourists travelling to Britain have been able to apply the same way as any other European. The United States and Canada have followed suit with simplified application procedures.
The changes seem to be paying off: Chinese tourism to Canada is up 30 per cent over the past year.
A spokesman for the Assistant Minister for Immigration and Border Protection, Michaelia Cash, said that in December the department had commenced a trial of an online visa application scheme through travel agents in China.
"The Australian government is committed to increasing the Chinese tourist market. Pending success of the trial, eligibility for online lodgement may be extended to additional travel agents in 2015 and eventually to individuals," he said.
http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/singing-karaoke-on-top-of-the-sydney-harbour-bridge-20150130-12zah7.html
