Dai Bin, President of China Tourism Research Institute: Let Qingdao people become the true spokespersons of Qingdao tourism

During the 2023 Shandong Provincial Tourism Development Conference, Dai Bin, the President of the China Tourism Research Institute, who was attending in Qingdao, accepted an interview with Qingdao Daily and answered questions from reporters on topics such as the tourism development conference and local tourism development, tourism and leisure city construction, new tourism demands, and consumption promotion. The full text is reproduced as follows.

During the 2023 Shandong Tourism Development Conference, reporters interviewed Dai Bin, the president of the China Tourism Research Institute, who was attending in Qingdao. "The in-depth implementation of the 14th Five Year Plan will surely create a new situation for the revitalization and development of China's tourism industry," said Dai Bin, the president of the China Tourism Research Institute. During this year's National People's Congress and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, Dai Bin appeared on the "Committee Member Channel" and answered questions from reporters about revitalizing the tourism industry. His travel story of "small town travelers" quickly became a hot topic. The people's yearning for a better life is the starting point and foothold of modernization construction. Currently, the tourism industry is gradually recovering, and people's tireless longing for unknown distant places is becoming stronger. How can tourism touch people's hearts? Perhaps it is precisely because it allows people to meet their inner selves and ideals that urban development has the most vivid possibilities. During the 2023 Shandong Tourism Development Conference, reporters interviewed Dai Bin, the president of the China Tourism Research Institute, who was attending in Qingdao. Dai Bin believes that a good tourist city should allow people to see both the cultural heritage and the future of the city. He started with his impressions of Qingdao and Shandong, and analyzed the high-quality development of urban tourism with a cutting-edge perspective. In Dai Bin's view, the convening of the 2023 Shandong Provincial Tourism Development Conference has first boosted confidence in tourism. Guests from all walks of life gathered in Qingdao to participate in the 2023 Shandong Provincial Tourism Development Conference, showcasing a high-quality tourism development environment invisibly. Tourists can travel with confidence, greatly boosting their confidence. Secondly, new driving forces have been discovered. The exhibitions and conferences held during the conference have allowed everyone to discover that technology, fashion, art, and culture have become new drivers of tourism development. The third is the promotion of commercial cooperation and the prosperity of the local economy. When it comes to his feelings about Shandong, Dai Bin believes that tourism in Shandong has developed rapidly in recent years, and the brand of "Hospitality Shandong" has deeply rooted in people's hearts. Whether it is the Hospitality Shandong New Year's Conference, the construction of cultural and tourism integrated development demonstration zones, national tourist attractions and resorts, significant progress has been made. Dai Bin said that both domestically and internationally, when it comes to "hospitable Shandong" and "friendly Shandong", everyone knows them, especially the host city of the conference, Qingdao. With the hosting of the Olympic sailing competition, fashionable and dynamic tourism products such as sailing and windsurfing have become a new driving force for the development of the tourism industry. The brand image of 'Hospitality Shandong' has been established, new momentum has been cultivated, and tourists are becoming increasingly satisfied. Dai Bin noticed that Shandong has released relevant documents to promote high-quality development of the tourism industry. We are very excited and uplifted to hold the Tourism Development Conference in Qingdao, but what we need to do next is to make millions of tourism practitioners and local community residents feel the driving force and enthusiasm for such development. That is to say, good policies need to be transmitted to the grassroots level in order to form a social consensus for high-quality development of the tourism industry, "said Dai Bin.

02 Create a tourist city that is both nearby and far away

Qingdao is a city with a long history and culture, whether it's Badaguan or Zhanqiao, there are many historical and cultural buildings, including Sifang Locomotive Factory. However, it is also a city full of fashion and modernization. "Wandering Earth 2" was filmed at Qingdao Oriental Film City, where modern manufacturing enterprises such as Haier and Hisense are also present. More importantly, over 10 million Qingdao citizens are constantly creating new cultures and lifestyles. "Dai Bin said that he has been to Qingdao countless times, but this time, his impression is that Qingdao is even more fashionable.

A city like Qingdao, which has a developed economy, a long history and culture, and also indicates the direction of modernization, is a good tourist city in my mind. A good tourist city should allow people to see both the cultural heritage and the future of the city. "Dai Bin made a special speech at the International Tourism and Leisure City Qingdao Forum during his visit to Qingdao for the 2023 Shandong Provincial Tourism Development Conference.

Dai Bin admitted that he is full of confidence in the development of tourism in Qingdao. Qingdao has a long history and cultural heritage, as well as fashion and technology, and strong support and new momentum brought by economic growth. More importantly, Qingdao is the most typical region of "hospitable Shandong".

Dai Bin put forward suggestions for the development of tourism in Qingdao from some aspects. In building the city's image, we need to tell more heartwarming stories of Qingdao and make Qingdao people the true ambassadors of Qingdao tourism. Compared to famous artists, celebrities, and virtual people, human links are the best way to travel, only people can move people. In terms of supporting policies, the investment and cultivation of business entities in Qingdao's tourism market can be further strengthened. To put it simply, tourists in Qingdao mostly deal with travel agents, hotel staff, and taxi drivers. The quality of emerging market entities and the vast number of tourism practitioners is crucial. Especially when developing inbound tourism, more efforts should be made to improve language proficiency, service level, and other aspects.

03 Pay attention to the needs of different tourists

Cities with high tourist satisfaction often impress tourists with the warmth of daily life. I hope Qingdao can become a city where culture and tourism are integrated and developed, and hosts and guests share a beautiful and happy life, "said Dai Bin. There are three evaluation dimensions for the high-quality development of cultural tourism: first, from the perspective of tourists, how satisfied they are and whether they can make them happy; Secondly, from the perspective of enterprises and tourists, whether the operating entities have vitality; Thirdly, from a local perspective, whether the development momentum is new or not.

Dai Bin believes that the current market is sinking, and in order to improve tourist satisfaction, it is necessary to understand their needs. Why did I tell the story of 'small town travelers' during the National People's Congress and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference? It's because currently, people buy their first plane tickets between the ages of 20 and 25. When I bought my first plane ticket, I was already in my 30s. Now that the time has dropped to 20, this change is enough to indicate that the market is sinking, "said Dai Bin.

Dai Bin stated that the majority of people's travel is still focused on sightseeing, and the average consumption is still very low. While many people pursue extremely personalized and high-quality travel methods, there are also many who have not flown or traveled abroad. The connotation of 'hospitable Shandong' in the new era should be more oriented towards mass tourists and more in-depth research on their new needs, "said Dai Bin.

Dai Bin believes that while meeting the needs of most people for sightseeing and tourism, it is equally important to meet the constantly increasing expectations of some consumers for new tourism. Among them, attention should be paid to new needs guided by young people, such as the need for deep experiences and local entertainment - they do not want to be separated from local citizens and need to open the "invisible wall" between citizens and tourists. At the same time, efforts should be made to promote entrepreneurship and innovation, actively improve the business environment, and provide better soil for more high-quality tourism products.