Storming the Beaches China's burgeoning middle
class, eager to see the world, is flooding Asia's tourist
spots - from go-go shows in Thailand to casinos in Macau.
Crystyl Mo joins a tour to Phuket and discovers from the
inside how the region's newest travelers will change China
ALSO Legend
of Luxury: Adrian Zecha retakes the helm
of super-luxurious Amanresorts By CRYSTYL MO
It is a typical Phuket scene: azure
skies, turquoise sea, white-sand beach - and about 500 mainland
Chinese. Among the crowd are Mr. Wu and Mr. Fan, members of
our package tour group. They are strolling along the beach in
long slacks, black loafers and dress shirts, Mr. Wu with his
slicked-back Elvis Presley pompadour and Mr. Fan with the owlish
glasses popularized by China's President Jiang Zemin. Near them
stands one of their tour mates, Ms. Li, dressed in an inexpensive
floral-patterned dress. The two men are government-trading company
executives who make about $100,000 a year; Ms. Li, who works
for a Chinese contractor to a foreign telecom company, earns
just $240 a month. What they have in common - besides the
fact that they all look comically out of place among the coconut
trees - is that they are experienced travelers. Though this
Phuket tour costs more than Ms. Li's monthly salary, it is already
her second trip to Thailand - thanks to her work unit, which
is paying for the vacation. "I love going abroad," she says.
"When I was younger I never imagined I would get to travel abroad,
but now I go every year."
Andrew Joyner American,
the old pro still on the go.
This is nothing short of an invasion. On the beaches of Phuket
and Hong Kong, in the shops of Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, mainland
tourists are sweeping across Asia. A dozen years ago, most Chinese
had never traveled outside their hometowns, let alone gotten
on a plane. In the 1980s, the only people who could travel were
government officials like Mr. Wu and Mr. Fan. But in the past
decade, relaxed regulations, rising income levels and increased
leisure time have produced a booming Chinese travel industry.
Now, millions of ordinary Chinese like Ms. Li go abroad every
year. The numbers are set to explode, creating a phenomenon
that will likely change the face of tourism in Asia and beyond.
Some tour operators complain that the new Chinese travelers
are crass and cheap; the new wave has churned up some ugly competition
in the budget-travel market. But according to the World Tourism
Organization, Chinese holidaying overseas will soar from the
current 10 million a year to 50 million by 2010, and to 100
million by 2020. This will make China the leading source of
tourists worldwide - and will provide an important boost for
many Asian economies.
WHO STAYS, WHO PAYS THAI TOURIST ARRIVALS AND EXPENDITURES
Country of Residence
No. of
Arrivals
Length of Stay
(Days)
Per Capita Spending
($/Day)
Tourism Receipts
($ mil.)
Hong
Kong
467,151
5.14
118.03
295.54
U.S
473,285
8.86
110.20
462.08
Singapore
655,767
4.86
108.78
346.69
China
704,080
5.70
106.91
429.04
Malaysia
1,054,469
4.01
105.37
445.54
Taiwan
707,305
5.75
105.02
427.13
Japan
1,197,931
6.13
101.76
747.29
Australia
323,275
10.86
97.10
340.88
U.K.
476,387
12.68
69.69
542.98
Germany
378,562
13.25
69.61
349.15
The new tourism will have a historic impact on China. As tens
of millions of Chinese see the world, they will bring back with
them new understanding of other cultures, a heightened sense
of confidence - and perhaps even new demands for more freedom.
In the mid-1980s, Taiwan allowed its people, long restricted
by decades of martial law, to travel overseas. That opening
helped Taiwan build an understanding of world competition, trends,
and politics, too.
Ultimately, the process helped usher in democracy there -
and it could one day in mainland China contribute to challenges
to the Communist Party. "Chinese traveling abroad in great numbers
is of unprecedented importance," says Billy K.L. So, chairman
of the Department of History at the Chinese University of Hong
Kong. "The impact will be enormous in many dimensions, including
the democratization process."
Beijing started letting its people out slowly, but today the
exits are pretty wide open. Travel visas were first granted
for Hong Kong and Macau in the mid-1980s, and they went mostly
to the wealthy and well-connected. Then came Thailand, Singapore,
Malaysia, the Philippines and North Korea. Last year, Australia
and New Zealand were added, and Japan recently joined the list
of approved countries. Getting a visa is much easier than it
used to be. Now, a Chinese tourist can get a group visa in two
weeks for around $24. A passport costs $18. As a result, Chinese
with more modest incomes are lining up for their share of the
great Asian holiday experience. "The only thing restricting
travel is the number of airline tickets available," says Yu
Weihua, deputy general manager at China Travel Service, one
of Shanghai's largest outbound travel agencies. "There simply
aren't enough seats to meet demand."
For the most part, Asia awaits with grateful, open arms. Contrary
to rumors that the Chinese don't spend, last year the average
Chinese tourist in Thailand outspent his counterpart from Malaysia,
South Korea, Taiwan and, remarkably, even Japan. The Chinese
also spent more per head than visitors from any European country.
Altogether, the Chinese handed over a total of $429 million
in Thailand last year, topped only by the Japanese and Malaysians.
Americans, numbering about two-thirds the total of Chinese visitors,
spent $462 million. "Many Chinese come in with a lot of money,
usually in dollars," says Peter Wong, operations director of
APT Travel in Bangkok. The reason? "Chinese people are having
their first chance to go overseas," says Suparerk Soorangura,
president of the Association of Thai Travel Agents. "They have
a long shopping list, for themselves and for their friends and
relatives."
Crystyl Mo for Asiaweek On Phuket's 007 Island -- so named because the Bomd
Flick Goldeneye was filmed there -- a tourist from Beijing
helps support the local economy -- 45 cents to hold
this bird of prey.
No wonder Thai tourism organizations are falling over themselves
to court the Chinese market. China was the fifth-largest source
of tourists to Thailand last year, with more than 704,000 visitors,
after Malaysia, Japan, Singapore and Taiwan. They stay longer
- an average of 5.7 days - than Singaporeans, Malaysians
and Hong Kong citizens. "It's a significant total if you multiply
it by the number of visitors," says Paisan Wangsai, a senior
official at the Thai Tourism Authority. "We believe that in
future they will stay longer and visit more new places." Thai
Airways (TA), which already flies to Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou
and Kunming, is seeking access to other destinations on the
mainland. "We have about a 70% load factor on the daily flights
to Beijing and Shanghai," says Vasing Kittikul, TA's vice president
for sales and distribution. "All our China routes are profitable."
The weak baht makes Thailand an attractive proposition for many
Chinese. But they are principally lured by the beaches, the
nightlife and the shopping. "At some department stores, more
than 10 buses call by each day," says travel agents association
president Suparerk. "The Chinese tourists pour out and do a
lot of shopping - they like the brand-name products." For
some men, the attraction is the easy availability of sex.
The members of our tour group are
no different from other mainland tourists: They love to spend
money. They splurge on gifts ranging from pearls to silk shirts
to stingray-leather wallets. But reflecting their modest backgrounds,
they display parsimony in other respects. As is customary back
home, they hand-wash their laundry in their rooms. When Ms.
Li is late for breakfast for this reason, one of her tour mates
exclaims: "She's doing her laundry now? We did ours last night!"
Some Thai tour operators grumble that the Chinese are too cheap.
The source of their frustration is a bizarre economic contortion
called "zero-dollar tourism" - in which holidays cost the
Chinese tourists nothing, apart from their airfare (usually
discounted) and what they spend on extras. The rest is picked
up by Thai tour operators. Stiff competition has led the Thais
to cut rates so low that many of them are losing money - and
cursing the day they started building up their Chinese trade.
At first, the Chinese brought easy money. When the tourism boom
from China began in the early 1990s, most visitors to Thailand
were wealthy and gullible. Thai tour guides could make a living
merely from commissions at the shops, restaurants and shows
they shepherded their groups to. As competition increased, Thai
travel agents began paying for the hotel, three meals a day
and trips. Some even "bought" mainland tourists from Chinese
travel agents at $120 a head. "It made sense," says Gel, a Pattaya
tour guide, "because in five days you could make back three
times your costs in commissions."
Times are tougher now. As China's masses fan out across the
cities and beaches of Southeast Asia, the rich ones like Mr.
Fan and Mr. Wu are moving on to other destinations. They are
being replaced by Ms. Li and her workmates, who are well versed
in the benefits of zero-dollar tourism. They also have been
told by friends to beware of rip-offs. Some of the new tourists
don't even look like holidaymakers. In April, a group of Chinese
farmers was turned back at the Thai border because customs officials
didn't think they were dressed like genuine vacationers.
Some tour guides complain that Chinese frugality could put them
out of business. "If I only ever led mainland tour groups, I'd
go bankrupt," says one. "I have lost money on nearly half the
last 12 Chinese groups I have handled. I refuse to lead another
mainland party." There are still ways to make money but the
methods are causing friction between some Thai agents and Chinese
travelers. They have also upset the Chinese government. These
days, some unscrupulous agents are treating mainland visitors
virtually like prisoners, browbeating them into accepting extras
that are not part of the package and channeling them to overpriced
establishments where the best commissions are paid. "The way
they treat these people is really something," says APT Travel's
Wong.
If tourists do not play along, bullying is used. "Some may not
want to go shopping," says Wong. "So they say they'll just sit
in the coach and wait. The operator replies, 'Okay, you can
stay in the coach, but the driver is going to have to park about
two or three kilometers away and he'll have to lock the coach
and turn off the air-con.'" The result: The tourists go into
the shop rather than sit in a hot, locked bus or stand around
in the street. There have also been reports of coaches not leaving
a store until enough people have bought a souvenir. "These are
the tactics some operators use," says Wong.
The fear of getting ripped off is
a recurring theme in our conversations. A member of our group
tells stories she had heard in Shanghai about Thai guides cheating
mainland tourists. "We heard there was a group last month that
wanted to get their money back from a performance they never
saw," she says. "The guide didn't want to return it, so they
threatened to tell officials back in China. Then the guide got
scared and gave the money back." Her boyfriend laughs, quipping:
"Now the guides are frightened to cheat us." Unfortunately,
we laugh too soon. Part of our itinerary is a Las Vegas-style
variety show at a theme park. Our tour guide charges us $27
each for the tickets; later we discover they cost only $15 at
the gate. Nobody, however, is willing to bring the matter up
with the guide. "I'm not going to make a big deal about it,"
says one man. "We're on vacation, so let's just forget about
it." So much for consumer rights.
By last year, the Chinese government had grown tired of the
fleecing of its citizens and of the way they were being "polluted"
by visits to massage parlors, sex shows and prostitutes. At
a meeting in Kunming last August, officials from the Thai, Malaysian
and Singapore tourist authorities, plus representatives of the
Chinese travel-agency industry, signed a six-point memorandum
designed to clean up the business. Among the provisions: no
more visits to prostitutes and sex shows and an end to zero-dollar
tourism.
Zero-dollar tourism continues, but the measures have had an
impact. The number of Chinese visitors to Thailand fell by 10%
last year, and dropped 23% compared with last year in the first
three months of 2001. "If you talk to people in China who've
had a chance to tour Thailand, probably nine out of 10 will
speak badly about the place," says Wong. "When I go to China
now and they ask me where I'm from, I feel uneasy saying I'm
from Thailand. It's a problem."
The Phuket experience would not be
complete without the sex shows. Only with us, they are called
"qigong shows" - meaning displays of traditional Chinese breathing
routines. Seven of us, including a married couple, pay about
$13 each to enter a club at the heart of Phuket's tourist strip
to watch three naked women cavort provocatively and insert razor
blades and other objects into their vaginas. Afterwards, one
of the men insists it was not actually a sex show. "It really
was a qigong performance, because the women were highly trained
in breathing techniques!" Without that training, he argues,
they could not have performed such tricks.
Small-time travel agents may complain that business is tough.
But plenty of hoteliers and tourist outfits are cashing in on
the sheer volume of Chinese coming in. The master of low margins
and huge volume is the monster-sized Ambassador City Jomtien
hotel near Pattaya, where Chinese make up nearly half the guests.
Thought to be the world's largest hotel, the Ambassador City
has 5,100 rooms and a capacity for 12,000 guests. The 16-hectare
complex doesn't advertise in travel magazines and there are
no road signs to alert passing trade. The Ambassador City offers
an enclosed and totally sanitized version of the Thai holiday
experience.
Among the hotel's features is an outdoor Thai-style market,
with a fleet of tuk-tuks waiting nearby to whisk shoppers
back to their rooms. On the way, they pass ranks of tennis courts,
four swimming-pool areas, a karaoke club and a gymnasium -
but no vestige of what may have stood here before the hotel
went up more than a decade ago. The only convenient way to leave
the Ambassador City is by bus. Taxis are technically available,
but guests must either pay an exorbitant 500 baht ($11) fee
at the hotel's taxi counter (800 baht in a normal taxi will
get you all the way back to Bangkok - a journey of more than
two hours) or undertake a long and exhausting walk to the hotel
gate. The hotel would not discuss occupancy rates or profits,
but hotel spokeswoman Chawalit Thangsamphan complained about
some Chinese guests. "They take down the curtains - we don't
know why," she says, "and sometimes we find the sheets in the
bathrooms. They don't know how to use the rooms."
The fact that mainland Chinese tourists don't inspire much
respect hits us as we're sitting in a restaurant built on stilts
just off the Phuket shore. The place is filled entirely with
Chinese tour groups like ours. The women are wearing polyester
suits and high heels. The men, most of whom chain-smoke, are
in long slacks despite the oppressive heat. When the food arrives,
dishes clatter noisily and some people spit bones unceremoniously
onto the table and the floor. I ask our guide where the European,
American and Taiwanese tourists are. He points to the building
next door. "You can't take mainlanders to the same places,"
he says matter-of-factly. "They're too loud and impolite. Anyhow,
the other tourists are willing to pay more to have a nicer meal."
Tourists from many countries start out their travels by isolating
themselves in flag-waving groups. But well-to-do mainland Chinese
are already starting to travel independently. Sure, as the Chinese
meet the world for the first time, there are funny cultural
clashes. But behind the travel-book clichEs is the fact that
many Chinese touring Asia these days look just like any other
middle-class sightseers. Given the chance to travel more frequently
and freely, they will pick up more than an acquaintance with
Western-style table manners. "Travel abroad is an opportunity
for communication," says Xue Xingguo, director of the Shanghai
China Travel Service Group. "It is an opportunity to open up
and to gain knowledge. We hope this encourages cultural understanding
and an understanding of other societies and world affairs."
That's only half of it. Travel broadens the mind - and it
can also change political systems.
Commentary
2003-12-06
Coming soon to the commentary column--behind the scenes stories of the how the articles are really put together--the difficulty in getting anyone to accept an interview in China, the political sensitivities, the great stuff that got cut because of space, and much more about the joys and frustrations of writing in China
