Australia was 17th among worldwide destinations for Chinese tourists on package holidays in the second quarter, lagging behind Russia in 13th place, Vietnam in seventh and leader Thailand, according to the China National Tourism Administration. The halcyon days of the 1980s and early 1990s — a time when Australia’s economy transitioned to services and the iconic Crocodile Dundee films lured Americans Down Under — seem a distant memory.
“Five-star hotels look too old, service is not so good and prices are high for what you get,” said Kevin Xu, general manager of Grand City Tours, which says it’s the biggest Chinese travel agent in Australia. “In other parts of Asia, hotels are new and service is excellent. There are also not enough four-star hotels in the Sydney and Melbourne CBDs and in high season they increase prices a lot.”
Xu’s assessment contrasts with the self-congratulation among government and tourism officials when Australia recorded more than 1 million Chinese visitors last year. The reality is the country is stuck in a 20th-century time warp after diverting investment to the resource industry to cash in on Chinese demand for iron ore and coal.
David Llewellyn-Smith is Chief Strategist at the MB Fund and MB Super. David is the founding publisher and editor of MacroBusiness and was the founding publisher and global economy editor of The Diplomat, the Asia Pacific’s leading geo-politics and economics portal.
He is also a former gold trader and economic commentator at The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, the ABC and Business Spectator. He is the co-author of The Great Crash of 2008 with Ross Garnaut and was the editor of the second Garnaut Climate Change Review.
