New Zealanders' negative attitudes towards Chinese visitors could derail the country's tourism boom, a local sales and training company says.
Following recent reports of Kiwi resentment towards Chinese property buyers and foreign drivers, antagonistic attitudes may translate into bad experiences for visitors, Jacqui Scott director of the Great Scott Training Company says.
Scott says business owners are reaping the rewards of Chinese tourism and there needs to be a change in attitudes where customer service takes place.
Last year 330,000 Chinese people visited New Zealand. Over the past five years visitor numbers have seen solid growth, with New Zealand's green reputation and abundance of premium foods attracting an increasing number of Chinese nationals.
"As a customer, even I have encountered antagonism when visiting other parts of New Zealand, so you can imagine what it might be like to be a Chinese visitor when people have a fear that they are buying up all of our houses," Scott said.We need to be educating the general population with the facts, and training our front line staff to understand how to work with different cultures."
