Leonardo Blair, Staff Reporter
WITH CHINA on the verge of giving Jamaica's tourism industry a major stamp of approval, players in the local hotel sector are now bracing themselves for what some are calling 'an Asian invasion' of the island next year.
"We are happy and our members are getting prepared," said Godfrey Dyer, president of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA). "Getting an agreement with China at this time is a very positive move, bearing in mind that China's economy is getting stronger and stronger everyday."
Ann Schniedenharn from the De Cameron Montego Bay Beach Resort, said her property has been readying itself for the Chinese visitors, adding that she didn't expect the language barrier to be a problem.
AN OPEN MARKET
"We have catered to Japanese so I don't see why we can't cater to the Chinese. We are an open market regardless of the language barrier," she said.
In the meantime, some players were not so certain about their preparations for the Asian influx. "Right now, we don't really have anyone who speaks Chinese or Japanese and I am trying to remember if we have had any of those persons here," said Neil McKennis from the sales and marketing department of El Greco Resort in Montego Bay.
China's ambassador to Jamaica, Zhao Zhenyu, recently announced his country's intention to list Jamaica as an approved destination for Chinese travellers. He said this is likely to happen when China's vice-president visits the island in February.
Just over 20 million Chinese travelled abroad last year, a 22 per cent increase over the number in 2002. Ambassador Zhao said that China should become the fourth largest tourist generating country by 2020, based on projections.
So far, China has given tourist destination approval to 54 countries. It has allowed its citizens to undertake group travel only to countries having this status. Cuba achieved this status last year and a five-star hotel is to be built in Havana's Hemingway Marina to accommodate the travellers.
Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister K.D. Knight had explained earlier that to tap the potential of the Chinese market, Jamaicans need to be prepared to handle Chinese-speaking tourists. It was pointed out that the local tourist industry does not currently have personnel trained to communicate with Chinese visitors. The Chinese Government has, however, agreed to send a teacher to the University of the West Indies to help with language training.
