Australian operators need to accommodate Chinese cultural superstitions to capitalize on the booming tourism market, a cultural expert says.
The Chinese market accounts for a large and growing portion of the Australian tourism industry.
Gold Coast Tourism figures show 245,000 Chinese tourists visited the city in 2015, and that number is growing at 15 per cent per annum.
However, a Bond University expert said there was still room for the industry to cater to and capitalize on unique Chinese culture.
Bond Centre for East-West Cultural and Economic Studies coordinator Annie Lo said Chinese people took their traditions and superstitions very seriously.
“Culture is a massive source of pride for Chinese people, whether they are travelling to Australia or [have] migrated here,” she said.
“It’s one of the avenues that they can actually pass on their culture through to their children, so they try and practice their traditions and values as much as possible.”
Numbers play a big part of their superstitions — the number four is a particularly ill omen — and Chinese tourists will go to great lengths to avoid the number which, in their language, sounds like the word for “death”.
“[They] would actually ask to be moved floors if they were on the fourth floor,” Ms. Lo said.
“Any sort of travel agency whose major market is Chinese tourism would book hotels asking specifically not to be in room number four or on level number four.”
Conversely the number eight can be a particular portent of good luck and good omens play a large part in attracting gambling tourists.
“I’m not sure if this is true, but I’ve known that people wear red underwear to casinos because [red’s] a sign of luck,” Ms. Lo said.
“[Also] never tap someone on the shoulder, because that is a sign of bad luck.”
The art of Feng Shui also comes into play when booking accommodation with many Chinese believing that a bed facing a doorway is particularly bad luck.
“You are not actually meant to stay in rooms with mirrors because mirrors actually encourage infidelity,” Ms. Lo said.
She said most casinos already took aspects of the Chinese tradition of Feng Shui into account in their designs — but used them in their own favor.
“Casinos actually resemble bird cages because it is believed that once you’ve got someone in the birdcage, they can’t fly out again,” Ms. Lo said.
“The flames that you see outside casinos, the open air flames, are actually meant to scare away the good luck from people coming in.”
Important to understand
Gold Coast Tourism chief executive Martin Winter said Chinese tourism was critical to the local economy.
“If accommodation houses on the Gold Coast are going to capitalize, it’s really important they understand that the way Chinese people think is different to ours,” he said.
“It’s really very advisable that they understand these cultural issues.”
Mr. Winter said given the number of new Chinese-owned developments, it was possible number four could be removed from floor numbers.
“It’s very likely and I think it’s a good thing,” he said.
All in all, Ms. Lo said there was a lot of opportunity to cater for Chinese visitors yet to be taken advantage of.
“If the Gold Coast is looking to increase their tourism with the Chinese market, why not develop a better understanding of what they want,” she said.