As the interest of Chinese tourists is mainly sight-seeing and shopping, travel agents have redesigned their packages accordingly. Laxman Chand at Sathi Nepal Tours and Travel said, "We offer half-day city tour and give them enough free time for shopping under the package."[break]
Newly-designed packages are of five nights, six days and six nights, seven days depending on the airlines they choose to fly. Travel agents said that considering their interest in sight-seeing, new destinations like peace pagoda of Pokhara and village walk in Chitwan have been included in the package. "Chinese tourists have started rafting and taking mountain flights too but shopping remains their top priority," immediate past president of Nepal Association of Tour and Travel Agents (NATTA) Ram Kaji Koney who operates Gandaki Tours and Travels said. He said there are nearly a dozen travel agencies under NATTA, which chiefly focus on Chinese tourists.
According to travel agents, Chinese tourists on average spend 20 percent of their total budget buying handicrafts and souvenirs. Though it´s hard to figure out the exact amount they spend, it is estimated Chinese tourists´ spending on souvenirs starts from $100.
Trekking and mountaineering which attract every fourth tourist visiting Nepal however has not been able to attract this segment. Koney said, "They (Chinese) are particular about services and unavailability of luxury hotels and restaurants along the trails has attracted almost negligible Chinese tourists to trekking."
Ujjwal Aryal, executive director at Fewa Travels, which is catering a good number of Chinese tourists, told Republica that his package (five nights and six days) costs $ 400 onwards, depending on the number of tourists and hotel category.
Unlike other nationalities, Chinese tourists largely travel in groups and usually spend a week traveling Kathmandu, Chitwan and Pokhara.
Fewa Travels, which reported a growth of 40 percent in business from Chinese tourists, has already received bookings for 20 new groups for November. On an average, a group consists of 15-22 tourists. Similarly, travel agency Sathi Nepal Travels and Tours plans to welcome four groups of Chinese tourists.
The number of Chinese tourists reached 30,000 till first nine months of Nepal Tourism Year (NTY) 2011, an aggregate growth of 61 percent. "Besides the increment in number, their average expenditure has also gone up," Aryal said. Majority of the visitors who used to pick budget hotels are now preferring to say in three to five star hotels.
´Chinese-speaking guides in high demand´
Although the number of hotels and restaurants targeting Chinese tourists is on the rise, the demand for tour guides has not been adequately addressed. Travel agents said limited number of Chinese speaking guides is a major problem. Immediate past president of Nepal Association of Tour and Travel Agents (NATTA) Ram Kaji Koney said it is almost impossible to take Chinese speaking guides for trekking.
"They are making good money from city tours itself and they don´t prefer to go on trekking," he added. Chinese speaking guides are charging up to $ 5 extra per tourist in groups apart from the regular wages because of high demand for the guides, Travel agents said.
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