Knowledge of foreign languages is very limited despite compulsory English studies at school. There are no opportunities to practice and Chinese are inherently shy about what they do not master. Information in Chinese is a necessity on board airlines, in restaurants, tour attractions, hotels and so on. This can begin with marketing collateral and extend to websites, information at consulates, tourist information desks at airports and in city centres. Chinese who travel abroad read up on Chinese language guide books written by Chinese. The information that you provide to the guests should consider what they are interested in, instead of direct translation of the same collateral that is used for a western audience.

The mainland uses a simplified form of Chinese written language, while Hong Kong and Taiwan use the traditional form. These must not be confused. Spoken Mandarin Chinese is the official dialect of China and Taiwan and ostensibly Hong Kong although Cantonese is the preferred lingua-franca in South China and Hong Kong. In Shanghai, though Mandarin is understood, Shanghainese dialect is the preferred business language.

The satisfaction of a tour group often depends on the skills of the Chinese speaking tour leader. Where possible, matching the dialect or background of the guide with the group will automatically put the tourists at ease.

Chinese people are quite patriotic and proud of their culture. It is considered ill-mannered to criticize China for sensitive issues like human rights, Taiwan or Tibet, which are based on Western media information they have no access to. As leisure tourists they do not expect to enter into political discussions. Based on China’s history of occupation by foreign nations, they are sensitive to racial stereotyping and bias. If they feel this to be the case with any service provided to them, their offence will be severe.

Chinese feel free to ask direct personal questions out of simple curiosity (personal income, blood type, date of birth and family relations for example). This is an expression of concern and friendship and not meant to be rude or intrusive. The differences between Chinese people from various regions can be just as pronounced as between different countries in Europe. Before receiving a group it is useful to know which area they are from in order to adjust your service and planning accordingly.

Credit cards are becoming more popular but international cards are difficult to obtain and normally require a large deposit in China. Therefore for travel, cash is still king. Unfortunately the large amounts of cash they take for shopping make Chinese tourists a target for robbery, so safety is one of their greatest concerns and should be addressed head-on.

Name cards are always exchanged at business and social meetings and should be handed out and received with both hands holding the card. If receiving Chinese guests, or visiting China, it is a good idea to prepare Chinese versions of your name card. They will show your guests/partners how to pronounce your name and what is your position. The Chinese surname always comes before the given name, usually consisting of one syllable, although there are exceptions. Names of ethnic groups in China are different. It is acceptable to shake the hands of people of the same gender while with younger people social handshaking is much the same as in the west. Social kissing, which is normal in Europe, is not the norm in China.

As Chinese avoid head on confrontation at any cost, you may be excused for thinking after a visit that everything went smoothly and to their satisfaction. In fact, the reason they do not complain is because they fear it will lead to an embarrassing confrontation. The concept of ‘face’ is extremely important. MianZi in Chinese, can be lost (shi mianzi) or given (gei mianzi). Losing face happens when someone is put in an embarrassing situation. Making a Chinese person nervous in an already uncomfortable and alien environment will definitely lead to a loss of face. Even when in the wrong, avoid a direct confrontation. If there is a tour leader, it is best to discuss problems with him or her first and ask him/her to facilitate the resolution. Finding a compromise is always seen as the best way.

It is usually likely that the guests will return to China and either complain to their travel agent or just to their friends and family. In any case, a responsible host will try to find out their real thoughts of the experience before they depart. Some tips on how to accomplish that:

• Ask the agent – Follow up visits by checking with the tour operator or travel agent if they had received any complains or comments on the services.
• Formulate questions differently – rather than asking “is everything ok?”, rather “how can we make your experience better?” or “what suggestions can you make to improve our service?”, so that the reply will be perceived as friendly and positive.
• Never assume you have received an honest reply. The cliché about yes meaning maybe and maybe meaning no is very much a fact in China.

Food and drink

Chinese cuisine is world famous. Chinese travellers do not easily accept other cuisines. Whenever Chinese cuisine is not available, Chinese travellers will have a hard time adjusting. At least one Chinese meal a day should be arranged. Chinese meals are shared together which often results in less expensive dining compared to Western restaurants. Chinese food abroad was adjusted to the taste buds of Westerners and is often not up to Chinese standards.

Depending on which province they come from, Chinese have very different tastes when it comes to food. People from Guangdong like fresh food with little spice, people from Sichuan, Hunan and Hubei enjoy very spicy food; people from Shanghai, Jiangsu and Zhejiang prefer sweet and people from the North of China eat more salty and oily cuisine.

Chinese often bring their own dried instant noodles, which they can eat at any meal, should the food they find on their trip not be suitable or not fill them up. Instant noodles are prepared by pouring hot water on them. Though it is difficult to satisfy a Chinese traveller when it comes to food, paying attention to the choices of cuisine will certainly be highly appreciated. A host that takes the care to find out what kind of Chinese food the clients like, or a hotel that goes the extra mile to add Chinese elements to the breakfast buffet, will win the respect and appreciation of their Chinese guests.

When it comes to drink, Chinese tea is ubiquitous. Unlike the black tea prevalent in Europe (‘red’ tea in Chinese), Chinese drink green tea leaves, which are less processed and therefore lighter in flavour compared to black tea. Nowadays, sweetened iced red tea is becoming popular amongst the young. Chinese visitors often bring their own tea leaves, since they do not expect to find it in Europe and prefer leaves to tea bags. Hotels and restaurants would do well to provide hot boiled water to brew tea or instant noodles even if they do not stock these items. In China each hotel and restaurant provide unlimited hot water or green tea free of charge, so this is expected in Europe as well. It is worthwhile stocking disposable chopsticks even if serving western food.

Beer is popular during a mealtimes and hard liquor for the men. Women are less inclined to drink alcohol and normally stick to tea or soft drinks. People from northern China are more likely to drink more potent stuff, such as rice wine (mijiu) or sorghum wine (gaoliang).

• Meals times tend to be early – 7 AM for breakfast, 11:30-12:00 for lunch and around 6 PM for dinner.
• All dishes are to be served at once or in the order they are prepared and rice can be served in one large bowl to be shared by the guests.
• In northern China people eat soup at the end of the meal, while in southern China people soup is a starter.
• Chinese usually don’t like sweet desserts such as cakes and are used to eat fruit at the end of the meal.
• In contrast to European cuisine, Chinese welcome a variety of meats and vegetables in one meal. Fish, poultry, beef etc can be served together, with rice and soup as a staple.
• People from Northern China love dumplings (similar to ravioli with meat, seafood or vegetable filling) as any meal of the day.
• Muslims make up a large minority in China who do not eat pork.
• There are very few vegetarians in China so no special arrangements need to be made, unless it is a Buddhist group.

Accommodation

Accommodation is normally arranged by the European tour operator. Hotel chains traditionally do not have direct contact with Chinese travel agencies although this will change. Chinese consumers are not familiar with the range of hotels in Europe or the standards. They form their expectations based on hotels in China and assume that the standards are the same across Europe. Managing their expectations and providing more information in advance in very important.

Chinese travellers often judge the hotel by the size of the lobby. They prefer large hotels with a modern look and state-of-the art equipment. A double room in China means 2 separate single beds, the equivalent of twin room in Europe. This is also referred to as ‘standard’ room and is preferred by Chinese guests.

• Hotels that feature Chinese restaurants or with a Chinese restaurant in the vicinity are always preferred.
• Shopping areas within walking distance have preference.
• It is helpful to provide information in Chinese where the nightlife takes place or where there are casinos.
• Chinese people are not used to drink tap water. They expect hot water flasks or water kettles in the room.
• We recommend stocking the mini bar in the room with green tea leaves and instant noodles. It is important to clearly show which items are for sale.
• Chinese electric plugs are 3 pronged and different to any European country. They use the same wattage, but adaptors are needed to suit the local sockets.
• Chinese people travel light so a basic selection of accessories such as toothbrush, toothpaste, razor, comb etc. in the room will be appreciated.
• Chinese international satellite programs are available all globally. CCTV 9 is an English language channel while other CCTV channels are all in Mandarin. Many satellite channels available in Europe are in Cantonese, so this is a point to notice. Providing such channels is a very good selling point.

Transportation

Coach: Comfortable, fast, safe and economical arrangements are expected. Chinese groups mainly travel by coach through Europe. The Chinese travel agencies are not familiar with the rules and regulations covering coach drivers in Europe and try to extend the driving hours to fit more in to each day. Local tour operators should clarify this area and provide (where possible) a seamless service throughout Europe.

Rail: Travelling by train through Europe is gaining in popularity, particularly for FIT. There is a room for much more promotion as Chinese are very used to this mode of transport, but have no awareness of how advanced and comfortable the rail system in Europe is compared to their own.

Air: The main requirement is direct air connections. There is a bottle neck on air routes from China to Europe and many choose connections via Asia or the Middle East. Air routes to Europe from Chinese cities other than Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou are preferred as currently almost all travel to Europe must transfer via these cities or Hong Kong. Some agencies even arrange charter flights during the peak periods to resolve this.

• Chinese-speaking cabin staff are vital, as there may be many tourists who are flying for the very first time.
• As a courtesy, any local maps translated to Chinese will help the tourists gain courage to venture on their own.

Sightseeing

Many Chinese travellers to long haul destinations are leaving their country for the first time. They prefer to visit at least three countries during their trip. Mono-destination itineraries are still rare but gathering interest. Attractions and itineraries are often decided by the European tour operator and are pretty standard. To promote new attractions or itineraries, the European providers will need to build long-term relationships with the Chinese travel agencies to gain their trust and support. As travel bookings are often last minute, less attention is paid to the details of the itinerary. With the limited knowledge of the agent this cannot be checked. Of course, it is does not help customer satisfaction at all, but will improve only with more experience, longer planning time, better visa procedures and consumer sophistication.

The Chinese-speaking tour escort or guide is of great importance to the Chinese tourist. Whenever the tour guide is not up to scratch, complaints will ensue. Checking in advance the source region of the group can help to match them with a suitable escort/guide. The tour leader coming with the groups is supposed to speak English, but don’t be surprised if communication proves difficult. Recent experience of ADS groups shows that agents try to save money by not paying their tour leader or hiring young, inexperienced ones. The tour leader then attempts to make up their revenue from shopping commissions.

Shopping

Shopping opportunities must be included in coordination with the travel agent and tour leader. The Chinese travellers love to purchase souvenirs during their trip, as it is their habit to offer presents to all their friends, relatives and colleagues back home. A large proportion of their trip budget is spent on gifts both in proportion to their income and in real terms. Chinese people are very socially aware and care what people think of them. They may all purchase the same goods once one member made a buy. Brand is very important to them. They will purchase items so as not to be outdone or not to embarrass the tour leader. However pressure selling is having a negative effect on the reputation of many destinations and travel agents. Though shopping is integral to the experience, discretion should be used. In China, shopping malls have long opening hours so it is important to inform the clients what the opening hours are in your region, to avoid disappointment.

• Favourite gifts: clothing, jewellery, cosmetics, watches, regional delicacies and souvenirs.
• Some groups already travel solely for the purpose of shopping. This started in HKG and Singapore and now also happens in France and Italy.